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http://www.archive.org/details/registeroffortduOOIamb
REGISTER
OF FORT DUQUESNE
1754 - 1756
A. A. LAMBING
MEMORIAL EDITION 1954
'^a
^ ^ "1^ NIHIL OBSTAT
Francis A. Glenn
Censor Deputatus
IMPRIMATUR
iji John F. Dearden
Bishop of Pittsburgh.
February 8, 1954.
ST. JOSEPH'S PROTECTORY PRINT, PITTSBURGH, PA.
^oiewom
February 8, 1954
The second centenary of the estabhshment of Fort Duquesne is
commemorated on April 17, 1954. The founding of the Fort marked
also the establishment of the first center of Catholic worship in
present day Pittsburgh. To pay honor to this significant event it has
been determined fittingly to republish the 1885 edition of the
"Register of Fort Duquesne."
This Register is one of the oldest and most important documents
of local history. As noted in the Preface of Monsignor Lambing's
work, it was first copied in the original French by John Gilmary Shea,
L.L.D. at the request of Bishop Michael O'Connor. Later in 1859,
because of the interest excited by Bishop O'Connor's copy, one
hundred copies were printed as a unit in Shea's Cramoisy Series of
historical documents. A translation of the Register appeared in the
Pittsburgh Daily Gazette in July, 1858.
There is much that is of interest in this venerable document. It
testifies to the pastoral concern of the chaplain for the spiritual
welfare of his people. The names of soldiers, of Catholic settlers
and of Indians are found in its pages. By implication it tells us the
story of zealous priests laboring under difficult conditions to min-
ister to this small part of the Church.
As a record of this early activity of the Catholic Church in the
Pittsburgh area, the Catholic Historical Society of Western Penn-
sylvania is sponsoring the republication of this interesting Register.
^ John F. Dearden
Bishop of Pittsburgh
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' FORT DUPESNE: ^
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH,
WITH AN
Ii]tro(liictory Essay ai|d 5otes
f] By Re^v. a. a. LambinQ, A. M., ™
Author op "A History op the Catholic Chdhch in the Dioceses of Pittsbuho and Allegubnt," etc., etc.;
President of the Ohio Valley Catholic Historical Society, and mkmbeil op several
Historical Societies.
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PITTSBURG, PA. : |^
PRINTED BY MYERS, SHINKLE A CO., CORNER WOOD STREET AND VIRGIN ALLEY.
GONTE)NTS.
PAGE.
Preface, 3
Diagram of Forts Duquesne and PitTj...... 6
Introductory Essay, 7
" The First Mass," (Poem) 32
Preface to Eegister, 36
Register, 38
Notes on Register, 88
XH K
BAPTISMAL REGISTER
OF
¥'0¥i'T DUQUE^^NE),
(From June, 1754, to Dec, 1756.)
TRANSLATED,
WITH AN
mTEODUCTORT ESSAY AND ITOTES,
By Re)y. a. a. L/AMBinQ, A. M.,
Author op "A History op the Catholic Church in the Dioceses op Pittsburg and
Allegheny," etc., etc. ; President op the Ohio Valley Catholic Historical
Society, and member op several Historical Societies.
-5bi$ioria qiioquo mobo ecripfa beieciai.
PITTSBURG, PA.:
PRINTED BY MYERS, SHINKLE & CO., CORNER WOOD STREET AND VIRGIN ALLEY.
1885.
Entered according to Act of CJongress, ia the year 1885, by A. A. Lambing, in the office of the
Librarian of Congresp, at Washington, D. C.
PREFACE.
«>HE accounts of the labors, sacrifices and martyrdoms of the
early missionaries of this country must ever form one of the
most interesting pages of our history. Not religion only, but
the sciences — geography, geology, medicine, philology, ethnology —
must recognize them among her most faithful, though not, perhaps, her
most speculative advocates. History especially finds them her truest
witnesses. Penetrating ever more and more deeply into the virgin
wilds, their mission brought them into contact with the aborigines
in a manner which led them to study these children of the forest in
a light the most favorable for learning the past of their history or
mythology, the present of their manners and customs, religious,
political, military and social, and their ideas of a future existence
when their career in this land of exile was terminated. Nothing
could exceed the zeal and intrepidity of these early missionaries ; and
though prejudiced, and insomecxses ignorant historians, have without
reason labored to impute motives to them unworthy of their high
calling, the whole tenor of their lives stands, and will ever stand, as
the best refutation of the groundless calumny. Contrasting them
with the " Apostle of the Indians," Mr. Bancroft, who will hardly
be suspected of partiality for the sous of Ignatius of Loyola, or
Francis of Assissium, was forced by the weight of truth to pay them
this tribute : " The religious zeal of the French bore the cross to the
banks of the St. Mary and the confines of Lake Superior, and looked
wistfully towards the homes of the Sioux in the valley of the Mis-
sissippi, five years before the New England Eliot had addressed the
tribe of Indians that dwelt within six miles of Boston harbor."*
The following pages will form another slight tribute to the zeal
and fidelity of these illustrious pioneers of Christian truth and civil-
ization.
*History of the United States, (centenary edition,) vol. II., p. 308.
4 Preface.
The history of the discovery and publication of the following
Register is thus briefly told me by Mr. John Gilmary Shea, LL. D.,
in a letter dated October 1, 1882. "I was the first one to call at-
tention to the fact that there were in Canada registers kept at French
posts in this country ; and when Mr. de Courcy was writing the
sketches, we got, through Hon. Jacques Niger, lists of the mission-
aries at Fort Duquesne, Ticonderoga, and other points. In writing
up the diocese of Pittsburg we used this material. After a time
Bishop O'Connor wrote to me to ask me to have the Fort Duquesne
Register copied in Canada. I accordingly did so. After another
interval in the course of our correspondence he mentioned the interest
it had excited, and the desire of many to copy it. I then offered to
print it in my Cramoisy series of tracts, limited to one hundred
copies, and to give him thirty out of the one hundred. He agreed
to my proposal." Mr. Shea then remarks that a gentleman " had
the assurance, in a note to Potter^s American Monthly, to say that his
father had paid for the printing. He got a copy from me gratis, and
never paid a single cent of the cost of printing. . . . He had
nothing at all to do with it." But this person was not the only one
to fall into error in regard to the unearthing of this little volume.
When I was writing the newspaper sketches from which my History
of the Catholic Church in the Dioceses of Pittsburg and Allegheny
took its origin, I stated that the Register had been printed at the
expense of Bishop O'Connor J and I did so on what I regarded as
the best authority I could have at the time.
A translation of the Register, now before me, appeared in the
Pittsburg Daily Gazette, in July, 1858, presumably from the pen of
Mr. Neville B. Craig, but it is not entirely free from error, as we
shall see further on.
In the following pages the original of Mr. Shea's publication is
given, with permission, as it was printed by him from the copy
obtained in the archives of Montreal ; no change has been made in
any particular and the capitals and punctuation are presumably those
made by the good missionaries who, more than a century and a quar-
ter ago, used the virgin forests here as God's first temple. In the
translation I have been rather literal than free ; studying as much as
possible to preserve the style of the original. The notes, by which I
have endeavored to illustrate the text for the benefit of those who
may not be able to do so for themselves, must stand on their own
merits, and they are appended for what they are worth ; but it is
hoi)ed they will tend to throw h'ght upon some points that may not
be clear to the mind of the general reader.
To enable the reader the better to understand the circumstances
from which the Register took its origin, an Introductory Essay accom-
panies the translation, in which the occupation of Western Pennsyl-
vania by the French, and their final expulsion, will be found
sufficiently explained.
In conclusion, I cannot but feel that this little work, illustrating,
as it does, not only our early religious, but also our secular history,
will be acceptable to the people of this part of our State, and will be
regarded by Americans of every part of the country as a valuable
addition to historical libraries.
Pittsburg, Pa., February, 1885.
a. Barracks, already built. 6, Commandant's House, not built, c, Store House. d,d. Powder
Magazines. e, Casemate, complete. / Store House for Flour, &c. g, Wells, in two of which are
pumps, h, Fort Duquesne. i, i, Horn Work to cover French Barracks, k. First Fort Pitt, destroyed.
t^ Sally Port.
Tntf^oductory Essay.
^hQ Prencli in OJestern Pennsylvania.
<>HE spirit which animated the early French emigrants to this
^'Sf'V^ country, was one of zeal, exploration and traffic, rather than of
fL^Z^i^xi colonization. Whether they were missionaries, spurred ou by
the love of souls, or explorers, incited by ambition, or traders, urged
on by cupidity, they were ever penetrating more and more deeply into
the western wilds. It is to this restless spirit that we are to attribute,
in a great measure, their limited success in colonizing the country,
and their consequent failure in obtaining a firm footing ; for it is a
well known fact that, while they opened up the country to others,
they did not succeed in laying the foundation of a permanent posses-
sion of it for themselves ; and when it was finally wrested from them
by the English, the number of settlers was very small for a nation
that had held possession for more than a century and a half.'
In their early incursions into the far west, they were obliged,
owing to the presence of the dreaded Iroquois,^ who dwelt south of
^The population of New France in 1754 was 55,000. With Louisiana and
Acadia it might be a little more than 80,000. The English colonies numbered at
the same time about 1,160,000 white inhabitants. — Montcalm & Wolf, Parkman, vol.
I. p. 20.
2" Among all the barbarous nations of the continent," savs Mr. Parkman,
" the Iroquois of New York stand paramount. Elements which among other tribes
were crude, confused and embryotic, were among them systematized and concreted
into an established polity. The Iroquois was the Indian of Indians. A thorough
savage, yet a finislied and developed savage, he is perhaps an example of the highest
elevation which man can reach without emerging from his primitive condition of
the hunter. — The Jesuits in North America, p. XLVII. " The name Iroquois is purely
French, and is formed from the term Hira or Hero, which means / have said, — with
which these Indians close all their addresses, as the Latins did of old with their
dixi, — and of Koue, which is a cry sometimes of sadness, when it is prolonged, and
sometimes of joy, when it is pronounced shorter. Their proper name is Agonnonsi-
onni, which means cabin-makers, because they build them much more solid than other
Indians." — Charlevoix, History of New France, Mr. J. G. Shea's translation, vol. II.
8 TTte FrejLcJi. ztl
Lake Ontario,^ to make a circuitous route. At first they were ac-
customed to ascend the St. Lawrence"* river to the mouth of the
Ottawa, and continuing up that stream, reach the upper lakes by
means of Lake Nippissing, French river and Georgian bay. Subse-
quently, when Fort Frontenac, or Cataraconi, was built at the east-
ern extremity of Lake Ontario, they were enabled to change their
course, and, following the St. Lawrence to its source in that lake,
pass, by means of the small lakes, rivers and bays that intervene, to
the southern extremity of Georgian bay. Still later they went by
lakes Ontario, Erie,^ and Huron;" and, finally, by the Allegheny''
and Ohio^ rivers.
p. 189. In his notes to Father Jogues' Novum Belgium — New Netherlands — Mr.
Shea gives a somewhat diflferent derivation of the term, remarking: "The name
they gave themselves was Kagingehage or Gannieguehage or Agniegueronon, tha
termination hage or ronon meaning people. The name of the tribe was Ganniagwari,
meaning she bear, which the neighboring tribes of the Algonguin tongue translated
to Maqua, the source of our word Moliawk. The Mohawks with the Oneidas
(Onneiout), Onondagas (Onontague), Cayugas (Goiogouen), and Senecas (Tsonnon-
touan), formed a league called in the Mohawk language, Hotinnonchiendi, in the
Seneca Hodenosaunee, and meaning, ' Tliey form a cabin,'" (pp. 48, 49). Mr.
Samuel G. Drake gives still another account of this famous confederation: "The
Mohawks, sometimes called Wabingi, are said to have been the oldest of the con-
federacy, and that the Onayauts (Oneidas) were the first that joined them by putting
themselves under their protection. The Onondagos were the next, then the Teuon-
towanos, or Sinikers, (Seneces), then the Cuiukguos, (Cayugas). The Tuscaroras,
from Carolina, joined them about 1712, but were not formally admitted into the con-
federacy until about ten years after that. The addition of this new tribe gained
them the name of ' the Six Nations,' according to most writers ; but it will appear
that they were called the Six Nations long before the last named period."— Drake's
Indians of North America, p. 500.
3"0ntara in Huron means a lake, Ontariio, beautiful lake."— Charlevoix, vol.
II., p. 84, note. In Marquette and Hennipin's map, drawn in 1687, it is called
Frontenac or Ontario. —Early History of Illinois, Sydney Breeze, p. 98. It was
also called Lake St. Louis.— Parkman's Jesuits, p. 143, note. In Father Joques'
Novum Belgium it is named Lac des Yroquois.
^Jacques Cartier called the St. Lawrence " the River of Hochelaga," or, " the
Great River of Canada." — Parkman's Pioneers of France in the New World, p. 183.
The name was first given to the bay only, because Cartier entered it on the 10th of
August, 1535, the feast of St. Lawrence. — Charlevoix, vol. I. p. 115. On Marquette
and Hennipin's map, it is called the River of Cataracoui or the River of the
Iroquois. — Early History of Illinois, p. 98.
^It takes its name from the Erie tribe of Indians that at one time dwelt south
of it, and were also called Erigas, Eriehronon, and Riguehronon, and who were pro-
JVesterTz JPeTxrLsylva.rLict. 9
As early as the winter of 1669-70, or in the spring of the latter
year, Robert Chavelier de hi Salle," penetrated to the iii)per waters of
the Allegheny, and descending that stream and the Ohio as far as
the falls, where the city of Lonisville, Kentncky, now stands, re-
turned. But he has left only the merest reference to this expedition
bably tlie Carantouans of Cliaiiiplain. — Parknian's Jesuits, p. XLVI., note. The
tribe, and; after it, tlie lake, were also called The Cats, from the number of wild cats
whicli were found in tlieir country. — Cliarlevoix, vol. II. p. 266, note. It was
called the like of Conti by La Salle out of gratitude to his friend the Count de
Conti.— Parknian's ifi 6'a//e, p. 116, note. On Laet's map it is called Grand Lac.
On Marquette and Hennipin's map it is called Lake Erie or Lake of the Cats. This
is the popular derivation of the name of this inland sea; but it is not accepted by
all students of our early history. There are many who combat it, and, I think,
successfully ; maintaining that tlie Indian word wliich the French translated "cat," or
'chat," does not mean ivild cat, but raccoon, and sliould so be translated into English.
According to tliis tlieory, which I must confess I regard as the correct one, tlie word
Erie was derived from the Huron term Tiron, which the French pronounced 2'ee-
roon, or Tu-era-kak ; the Onondaga word for raccoon. In support of this derivation
of tlie word, I shall quote the following extracts from two authorities. Dr. O' Cal-
laghan gives the subjoined : "There is on one of tliese islands, (in tlie west end of
Lake Erie), so great a number of cats that the Indians killed as many as nine hun-
dred of them in a very sliort time."— Memoir of the Indians, 1718, Col. Doc , N. Y.,
IX. 886. Side by side with this, place the following, written some forty years later
by a man of no mean intelligence wlio was a prisoner with the Indians and occasion-
ally on the spot. "Some of the Wyandots or Ottawas frequently make their winter
Iiunt in these islands, (the same islands.) Though excepting wild fowl and lish
there is scarcely any game here but raccoons, which are amazingly plenty, and ex-
ceedingly large and fat, as tliey feed upon tlie wild rice which grows in abundance
in wet places round these islands. It is said that each hunter in one winter will
catch one thoiisan 1 raccoons." And again, "As the raccoons here lodge in the rocks,
the trappers make their wooden traps at the mouth of the holes; and as they go
daily to look at their traps in the winter season, they generally find them filled with
raccoons."— Co/. Smith's Captivity, pp. 81, 82.
«So named from the tribe of Indians on its northeastern shore, which the
French called Ilurons, though their name was properly Yendat.— Charlevoix, vol.
II. p. 71. The origin of the terra Huron is traced by Mr. Parkman to the grotesque
manner in which the Indians wore their hair, that made the French, on first meet-
ing them, exclaim : "Quelles hures!" "What boars'-heads !"— J«wi7s, p. XXXIII,
Cliamplain calls Lake Huron " Mer Douce," the Fresh Water Sen.— The Tioneers of
France in the New World, Parkman, p. 366. On Marquette and Hennipin's map it
is called Lac Huron, Michigane. In the map attached to Washington's Journal
(Sabin's Reprints, No. I, New York, 1865), Lake Huron is called " Quatoghi or
Hurons Lake.
'It is well known that in early times both the French and English regarded the
Allegheny and Ohio rivers as but one stream. The name given them by the French,
"La Belle Riviere," "the Beautiful River," is but a translation of the Seneca name
10 TKe FrencTh in
in his Avritings, so that for a time many denied it altogether, though
later investigations have placed it beyond reasonable doubt. But an
impassible barrier yet existed to the safe travel and exploration of
these parts, as has just been stated, in the fierce and treacherous
Iroquois, or " Five Nations," who were the terror of both the French
of the streams, Ho-he-ya, changed by both the English and French at a later day
into the present name Ohio. As to the word Allegheny, says the compiler of the
History of Venango County, (p. 98), "There are several theories given for the origin
of the word Allegheny. Frederick Post, the Moravian missionary, sent among the
western Indians in 1758, made a statement that Allegheny was the Delaware name
for the Ohio. Proud, in his History of Pennsylvania, published in 1797, adopts the
opinion of Post in regard to it. The Lenni Lenape, in tlieir earliest tradition,
speak of the Allegewi, whom they met on the banks of the Mississippi, and this is
one of the theories that is advanced for the origin of the name Allegheny river and
mountains. Schoolcraft, who is generally regarded as standard authority on Indian
history, says : ' The banks of this stream were in ancient times occupied by an
important tribe, now unknown, who preceded the Iroquois and Delawares. They
were called Alleghans by Golden in tlie London edition of his work, and the river
is named Allepan by Lewis Evans in his celebrated map of 1755.' Evans also states
that the Shawanese called the Allegheny or Ohio Palawa-Kunki. Schoolcraft ren-
ders the word Palawa-Thoriki. The name given the river by the Delawares is
more properly rendered Tallegawe, and in tliis form it appeared in many of the
early prints. Some authorities allege that the word Allegheny was applied to the
mountains that now bear the name, by the first English settlers ; that they derived
it from the Indians, and that it was supposed to mean Endless." Rev. John Hecke-
welder in his Indian Nations, (p. 48) says: "Those people, as I was told, called
themselves Talligewi or Alligewi. Colonel John Gibson, however, a gentleman who
has a thorough knowledge of the Indians, and speaks several of their languages, is
of the opinion that they were not called Talligewi, but Alligewi, and it would seem
that he is right, from the traces of their name which still remain in the country,
the Allegheny river and mountains having indubitably been named from them.
The Delawares still call the former Alligewi Sipu, the river of the Alligewi." The
same writer, in his Names ivhich the Lenni Lenape gave to Rivers, &c., pp. 13, 14,
says : "The Allegheny corrupted from Allegewi, is the name of a race of Indians
said to have dwelt along the river of that name, and in AUegewinink, i. e , all the
country west of the Alleghenies, drained by the tributaries of the Ohio." My
friend, the late Robert W. Smith, of Kittanning, gives the following interesting
letter on the subject in his History of Armstrong County, (p. 156). It was written in
reply to an inquiry made by him, and is perhaps the most satisfactory explanation
of the name to be found anywhere :
"The Watkinson Library, Hartford, Conn., Dec. 4, 1877,
Dear Sir : — Mr. F. Vinton, of Princeton, encloses to me your request for the
etymology of the Shawano name for the Allegheny river, which you write Palawu-
thep-iki. The name properly belongs to land, or some locality, on the river, or near
it. Palawa, otherwise written Pelewa, is the Shawano name for the wild turkey ;
'Western ^erLnsylvcLTvia. 11
and Indians from the mouth of the St. Lawrence to the banks of the
Mississippi. In addition to their acknowledged prowess, which won
for thern the proud title of " the Romans of America," their confed-
eration rendered them still more formidable, and the fire-arms
with which they were furnished by the Dutch, of New York, prior
to the year 1621, gave them an advantage which no other Indians
Miami, Pilauh ; Illinois, Pirewa. Pelewa-sepi, or, as a Shawano often pronounces it,
Peleworthepi, Turkey River, place, or country. Whether the Allegheny was so
named because of the abundance of wild turkeys, or from the turkey tribe (Una-
lachtgo) of the Delawares, I cannot certainly say, but the former is the more 'proba-
ble. Truly yours,
J. Hammond Trumbull."
The allusion to wild turkeys as the originators of the name of our river will not
be thought improbable, if we remember that at least twenty-eight years after Pitts-
burg took its present designation. Judge Breckenridge could write in the first
number of the Pittsburg Gazette, which appeared July 29, 1786, such words as these
in regard to Smoky Island and Monument Hill : " At the distance of four or five
hundred yards from the head of the Ohio is a small island, lying to the northwest side
of the river, at a distance of about seventy yards from the shore. It is covered
with wood, and at the lowest part is a lofty hill famous for the number of wild turkeyt
which inhabit it." — Craig's HiHo'^y of Pittsburg, p. 190. On The Historical Map of
Pennsylvania the upper Allegheny is named Palawutheptki, and the lower Allegheny
Palawuthepi.
'The Ohio is quite as rich in Indian and French names as the Allegheny ; for,
besides the name Ohio, already discussed, there are nearly a dozen others. La
Salle gave it the name of St. Louis, as we learn from a map dravm by
Franquelin, in the year 1684, which Parkman calls, " the most remarkable
of all the early maps of the interior of North America." On this map it
is called the River St. Louis, or the Chucagoa, or the Casquinampogamou ;
and one of its principal branches is called the Ohio of Olighin. In the
official document drawn up by La Salle on taking possession of the valley of the
Mississippi, which was executed at the mouth of that stream in April, 1682, he
names the Ohio ; " the great river St. Louis, otherwise called the Ohio," and in the
same document it is called the Olighin-Sipuo, and the Chukagoua. In Marquette's
map, which Parkman calls " a rude sketch," the Ohio is laid down as the Ouabous-
kiaou. — La SaMe, pp. 456, 457. In the copy of Marquette's map given in the Early
History of Illinois, a stream that would appear to correspond to the Ohio is marked
with a name, which, as well as I can make it out, is Sabequingo. On the map of
Marquette and Hennipin, in the same volume the lower Ohio to the mouth of the
Wabash, and that stream, which are given as one, are named the Riviere d' Oubache
ou S. Heronyme (the Wabash or St. Jerome's river), and the Ohio above that point,
the Ohio ou la Belle Riviere. From this and the fact that, in Kipp's Early Jesuit
Missions, (Father Marest's narrative), where the Ohio is named the Ouabache, it is
evident that this name was only applied to that part of the Ohio below the
12 The. Fi^eTLcK tn
possessed. The Marquis de Tracy,"* Lieatenant-General of Canada,
penetrated their country in the autumn of 1666, burned a number of
their more important villages, and forced them for a time to pay at
least the semblance of respect to the power of the white man. But
they soon recovered from the shock, and continued their depredations
until Count Frontenac,' ' Governor-General of Canada, again entered
their domain at the head of a formidable army, in 1696, and inflicted
a blow on them from which they never entirely recovered. . The
mouth of the Wabash, and that, consequently, the early explorers regarded
the Ohio as a branch of the Wabash, instead of the Wabash as a branch of
the Ohio. In the map accompanying Shea's Charlevoix, it is called L'Oye
ou La Belle Riviere. Mr. Heckewelder, in his Indian Names, &c., (pp.
34-36) referred to above, labors at length to prove that the name Ohio was
corrupted by the early traders from Delaware Indian words expressing cer-
tain qualities of that stream ; but that derivation is not accepted, as the name
Ohio is evidently of Seneca origin. The Delaware name of the river was Kit-hanne,
(Minsi Delaware, Oicht-hanne) signifying, mnin stream. On the map accompanying
Washington's Journal it is called "Ohio or the Fair River." "Outside of Pennsyl-
vania, the word is almost universally spelled 'Alleghany.' The orthography given
to the word in New York State, is ' .lllegany,' and the line between the two States
seems to divide the two methods of spelling the name of the river. Fn fact all
authorities and all publications without the limits of the State give ' Alleghany' or
' Allegany' as the orthography of the word, but Pennsylvanians stubbornly adhere
to ' Allegheny.' The other methods are evidently modernized." — History of Venan-
go County, p. 98.
^So well known an explorer as La Salle needs but a short notice. Robert Cheva-
lier de la Salle, was born in Rouen, France, in November, 1643. He was a short
time with the Jesuits, but withdrew, and came to Canada in 1666, from which time
his life was given to exploring the great lakes and the Mississippi with its tribu-
taries, till he was killed in Texas, March 19, 1687. For an estimate of his charac-
ter and qualities see Parkman'sl/a Salle, pp. 406, 407 ; also Charlevoix, vol. lY, pp.
94, 95. — Parkman's La Salle, pp. 22-25. Some authorities maintain that the stream
discovered by La Salle was not the Ohio, but one further to the west.
1 "Alexander de Prouville, Marquis de Tracy, Lieutenant General of the King's
Armies, was born in France about the year 1603, and, writes Mother Mary of the
Incarnation, a nun of Canada, " was one of the largest men I ever saw." He came
to Canada in June, 1665, with the powers of viceroy ; entered the Mohawk country
in 1666, and returned to France where he died. — Charlevoix, vol. III. ; Parkman's
Old Regime in Canada.
• 'Louis de Buade, Count de Frontenac, was born in France about the year 1620 ;
entered the army at an early age, and was appointed Governor-General ot Canada,
arriving in September, 1672. He was a man of more than ordinary ability, but was
inclined to be arbitrary and prejudiced. He encouraged Marquette, Joliet and La
Salle in their explorations, and was recalled to France in 1682. But when Canada
was on the verge of ruin he was sent out again, in 1689, maintained a vigorous
Westerrz ^eTZTXsj/ZvcmicL. 13
way was now open for the navigation of the upper St. Lawrence,
Lake Ontario, and the Niagara^- river witliout fear of serious
molestation ; and the route by way of the Allegheny and Ohio rivers
— which were known to both the French and Indians by the com-
mon name of the Ohio or " the Beautiful River," — became safe and
practicable.
With the discovery of the mouth of the Mississippi, by La Salle,
in April, 1682, another motive was added to those of zeal, ambition
and traffic; it was that of taking possession of the whole interior of
the continent, and establishing a line of forts from the mouth of the
St. Lawrence to that of the Mississippi, not only for the purposes of
defense, but also as re-lay posts and trading stations with the natives.
In the execution of this they were greatly favored by the presence
of the Allegheny mountains, which presented a barrier to the pro-
gress of colonization from the seaboard, and also rendered it difficult,
as subsequent events proved, to defend the country when occupied.
Besides, the French had a line of water communication throughout
the whole extent of their vast possessions. But they not only had
the geography of the country in their favor, they are also well known
to have been especially successful in their management of the In-
dians, a point in which the English almost utterly failed. By means
of the Mississippi they could ako facilitate commerce during the
long season when the St. Lawrence is blocked with ice, and be ena-
bled to communicate with the interior of the country in case the
enemy should seize the mouth of either of these rivers.
The English naturally regarded the action of the French with an
unfriendly eye, and this feeling was not confined to the representa-
tives of the government, but was })erhaps more keenly felt by the
Indian traders, whose code of laws was dictated by their power alone.
policy, repulsed the English from Quebec in 1690, penetrated the Iroquois country
six years later, and died at Quebec in November, 1698. — Parkman's Frontenac ;
Charlevoix, Neiu France.
^^The Jesuit Father Regueneau in the Relation of 1648, calls the Niagara river
and falls, the Onguiaarha. It was also named the ri/er of the Neutrals, from the
tribe of Indians livino; north and west of it between the Hurons and the Iro-
quois, and which remained neutral in the wars of these nations. — Parkman's Jesuits,
p. 143, note.
14 The French tn
As early as 1654 English explorers were sent into the valley of the
Ohio, but without effecting any permanent results.*^ They also
traded with the Indian tribes within the present territory of Ohio,
as early as 1715.' '^ But when at length the French took military
possession of the valley of the Allegheny and Ohio, the English felt
that a barrier was raised that must be removed at all cost, or there
would be an end both of trade with the natives and of colonization.
On these points a writer of tiiat time remarks: "By these limits,
which the French have prescribed for us by their forts, they have
stript us of more than nine parts in ten of North America, which
they may be said to be in possession of, and left us only a skirt of
coast along the Atlantic shore, bounded on the north by the St.
Lawrence and on the west by the Appalachian or Allegheny moun-
tains, which are nowhere above two hundred and eighty miles
distant from the coast, and in some parts not more than one hundred
and twenty. In consequence of these proceedings, they have already
prevented us from extending our settlements beyond our present
bounds, cut otf all our intercourse with the Indians, and further re-
duced the small share they had left us of the fur trade, having
gotten into their possession six or seven-eighths of it before."'^
Whatever may have been the relation of the two powers in the Old
World, this step on the part of the French was tantamount to a
declaration of war on this side of the Atlantic ; and hence it is that
from the first their's was in many respects a military occupation. It
proved to be the commencement of a struggle which kindled the
flames of war in both hemispheres, and while it resulted in driving
the French from their possessions in North America, it paved the
^'"Colonel Wood, who dwelt at tlie falls of the James river in 1654, sent proper
persons (among whom was one Mr. Needham), who, passing the Allegheny moun-
tains, entered the country of the Ohio, and in ten years' space discovered several
branches, not only of that river, but also of the Mississippi itself. . . . Also in
1674 Captain Botts made another progress through the same country." — State of the
British and French Colonies in North America, London, 1755, pp. 107 and 118 ; Colo-
nel Smith's Captivity with the Indians, p. 181, note.
^* Journal of Captain Trent, pp. 12, et seq.; Montcalm <fe Wolf, Parkman, vol. I.
chapter III.
^^State of the British and French Colonies in North America, p. 11.
W^estem FenirsylvaTxicx 15
way by that very act for tlie overthrow of British rule in tlie col-
onies, as we shall see in the sequel.
The tirst person to descend the Allegheny and Ohio rivers take
possession of the country in the name of the King of France and
draw a map of these streams, was Celoron,'** in his expedition of
1749. He was sent by the Marquis de la Galissoniere,'"^ Governor-
General of Canada, in command of two hundred and fifteen French
and Canadian soldiers and fifty-five Indians of various tribes, to coun-
teract the designs of the English. The principal officers under him
were Contrecoeur,' ^ who afterwards built Fort Duquesne, Coulon de
^ '"'Tlie following particulars in the life of a man who figured so early in our his-
tory, for which I am indehted to a brief but instructive paper by A[r. Isaac Craio- in
the Historical Register, vol. II. (pp. 248, et seq.) will no doubt prove interestino-. In
1739 he was sent from Michiliniackinac in command of an expedition against the
Chickasaws. In July, 1741, he returned on a mission to theOttawas at Michilimacki-
nac. Soon after he was in command at Detroit ; he was sent in October 1744 to
command at Fort Niagara. In June, 1747, he is spoken of as conmiander at Fort St .
Frederic on Lake Champlain, but was relieved in November, and was despatched
to Detroit with a convoy, in May, 1748, from which he returned in September. He
was then trusted with the expedition down the Ohio. In the summer of 1750 he was
commander at Detroit, and five years later was again at Fort St. Frederic. In the fol-
lowing summer he was commander of a detachment which liad an engagement with
the English at Cresap's fort, near Cumberland, and in September of the same year
he reached Montreal, the bearer of despatches from Dumas, commander of Fort
Duquesne. He must not be confounded, as is sometimes done, with another officer
Captain Celoron de Blainville. His chaplain. Father Bonnecamps, speaks of him
as fearless, energetic and full of resources ; but the Governor calls him haughty
and insubordinate. — Montcalm and Wolf, Parkmnn, vol. 1. pp. 76-84.
1 'Roland Michel Barrin, Marquis de la Galissoniere, was born at Rochfort
France. November 11, 1693 ; rose through different grades to that of admiral- was
appointed Governor-General of Canada in 1747, — that province being under the
management of the marine department, — was energetic in maintaining the intei-
ests of France; returned to his native land late in 1749; and died at Nemour
October 26, 1756.
I'ln 1668 concessions of land were made to certain officers in Canada, among
whom was Anthony Pecody, Sieur de Contrecoeur. — Charlevoix, vol. Ill, p. 112.
What relation he was to the officer here mentioned, or whether any, I have not
been able to learn. In the present Register, the officer here mentioned is
called " Monsieur Pierre Claude de Contrecoeur, Esquire, Sieur de Beaudry
Captain of Infantry, Commander-in-Chief of the forts of Duquesne, Presqu' Isle
and the Riviere au Ba'ufs." He was in command of Fort Niagara at the time
of which we are now speaking ; but he afterwards succeeded to the command
16 TTte, FrencTL ire
Villi^rs'^ and Joncaire-Chabert.^^ A very interestiug paper ou this
expedition was published in The Magazine of American History,
(vol. II. pp. 129-150) by the late Hon. O. II. Marshall, of Buffalo,
N. Y. Both Celoron and his chaplain, Father Bonneoani|)S,^ ' a
Jesuit, kept journals of the expedition, and the latter also drew a
map, which is remarkably accurate considering the circumstances.
He also took the latitudes and longitudes of the principal points.
Provided with a number of leaden plates, which were about eleven
inches long, seven and one-half inches wide, and one-eighth of
an inch thick, they left La Cliine,^- above Montreal,-^ ou the
15th of June, 1749, and ascended the St. Lawrence to Lake Ontario.
Coasting along the eastern and southern shores of the lake, they
reached Fort Niagara on the 6th of July. Pursuing their course
they arrived at a point on the southern shore of Lake Erie, near the
spot where the village of Barcelona, N. Y., now stands, where they
disembarked on the 16th. By means of Chautauqua-'' creek, a
of the detachment wliicli liad before belonged to M. Saint Pierre, whether he
was in command of tlie fort at the time of the battle of the Monongahela, (Braddock's
Defeat), July 9, 1755, is disputed. See also registry of the interment of Sieurde Beau-
jeu further on. The last date on which the name of ('ontrecceur is found in the
Register is March 2, 1755 ; and the first appearance of that of M. Damas is,
September 18tli of the same year. The number of entries in the Register
is so few, indeed, that they cannot be taken as an authority in fixing dates
with precision ; but where a name is mentioned it is always a high authority. What
became of M. Contrecoeur after his retiring from Fort Duquesne, I have not been
able to learn.
i^There were seven brothers of this family, six of whom lost their lives in the
Canadian wars. This one commanded an expedition against Fort Necessity in
June, 1754. He was afterwards taken prisoner by the English at the capture of
Fort Niagara. — Mag., Amer., Hist., vol. II. p. 130; The Olden Time, vol. II. p. 152.
^"Of the elder Joncaire, the father of the one referred to in this place, Mr. Park-
man says: " The liistory of Joncaire was a noteworthy one. The Senecas had cap-
tured him sometime before (the year 1700), tortured his companions to death,
and doomed him to the same fate. As a preliminary torment an old chief tried to
burn a finger of the captive in the bowl of his pipe, on which Joncaire knocked
him down. If he had begged for mercy, their hearts would Jiave been flint ; but
the warrior crowd were so pleased with this proof of courage that they adopted him
as one of their tribe, and gave him an Iroquois wife. He lived among them for
many years and gained a commanding influence, which proved very useful to the
French." — Fronlermc, p. 441. He died in 1740, leaving two sons, Chabert Joncaire,
and Philip Clauzonne Joncaire, both of whom were in the French service and
were in (Jeloron's expedition. The one who took the most prominent part was
Westerrh ^eThrtsylv^ctThicL. 17
portage, Cliautauqua Lake and Couewango^^ creek, they came, on
the 29th, to the Allegheny river, near the spot now occupied by the
town of Warren, Pa. The first of the leaden plates was buried at
this point. The official record of the burying of the several plates,
and the entries in Celoron and Father Bonnecamp's journals are sim-
ple statements of the facts ; but the inscription, which was nearly the
same for every plate, may be a matter of curiosity. This one is as
follows : " In the year 1749, in the reign of Louis the XV., King
Chabert de Joticaire, or Joncaire-Chabert. — Montcalm & Wolf, Parkman ; Mag.
Amer. Hist., vol. 11., p. 140. He was on the Allegheny for the next two years at
least, and was at Logstown on May 18, 1751. — Hist. West. Penna. ; App. p. 26.
Both were taken prisoners at the capture of Fort Niagara. Tlie name is variously
spelled by early writers, as John Coeur, Jean Coeur, Joncceur, Joncaire, &c.
^^I have not as yet been able to learn anything of this noted Jesuit missionary,
but hope soon to be able to satisfy both my own and the reader's curiosity.
^*0n the 19th of July, 1669, La Salle set out on an expedition through the lakes
with a view of discovering a western pass to China, (French, La Chine) ; but after
proceeding some distance he returned, and his place on the St. Lawrence was out of
derision called La Chine, a name which it bears to this day. — Charlevoix, vol. III.
p. 122, note. Another evidence that those who do the most for their fellow-men are
often better remembered in the mistakes they make than in the good they do.
2 ^Called by the Indians Hochelaga. The first white man to visit it was Jacques
Cartier, October 2, 1535. It was a Huron-Iroquois town, as the name indicates.
The Seneca for the French name Montreal was Dohkia gi-ga. The present island
and city take their name from that of Mont Royal, which Cartier, at the time of
his visit, gave the mountain at the foot of which the town stood. — Charlevoix, vol.
L, pp. 118, 119.
**" The name Chatacoin and Chatakouin, as spelled by Celoron in his journal, and
Tchadakoin, as inscribed on the plate, and Tjadakoin, as spelled by Bonnecamp
on his map, are all variations of the modern name Chautauqua." Early authors
will be found to iiave written it differently : as, Shatakoin, Jadachque, Cahdocoin,
Chaud-dauk-wa, and Jah-dah-gwah. It is said to mean, " a place where a child was
swept away by the waves ;" " where the fish was taken out ;" " the foggy place ;"
" the elevated place ;" while the configuration of the lake would favor another in-
terpretation, "a sack tied in the middle." — Mag. Amer. Hist., vol. II. pp. 135-138.
'^^On the plate buried by Celoron at the confluence of this stream with the Alle-
gheny, it is called the Kanaaiagon, but in his journal he spells it Chanougon ;
while Father Bonnecamp writes it Kananougon. There are also other forms of
the word. — Mag. Amer. Hist., vol. II. p. 136-140. " Conewango is corrupted from
Guninga, signifying, they have been gone a long time, they stay along time.' The etym-
ology is : " Gn-ne-u, long. Gu-naz-u, it is long. Gu-ni, a long while. Gu-rm gi-a,
he stays long." — Heckewelder, Indian Names, &c., p. 21.
3
18 The, FrencTb trt
of France, we, Celoron, commander of a detachment sent by Mon-
sieur the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of New
France, to re-establish tranquility in some Indian villages of these
cantons, have buried this plate of lead at the confluence of the Ohio
and Chautauqua, this 29th day of July, near the river Ohio, other-
wise Belle Riviere, as a monument of the renewal of the possession
we have taken of the said river Ohio, and of all those which empty
into it, and of all the lands on both sides as far as the sources
of the said rivers, as enjoyed or ought to have been enjoyed by the
kings of France preceding, and as they have there maintained them-
selves by arms and by treaties, especially those of Ryswick, Utrecht,
and Aix la Chapelle.""''
As the expedition proceeded down the river, Celoron endeavored to
strengthen the attachment of the Indians to the cause of France, but
he soon found that all along the Allegheny there was a strong bias in
their minds in favor of the English.
They passed among other places mentioned in their journals, the
mouth of French creek,^'' "The Indian God,"-^ the Indian village
'^^Mag. Amer. Hist, vol. II. p. 132.
^'In the early French archives this stream is called the Riviere aux Bceufs ; and
in the Pennsylvania Archives the name is simply translated into English as the
"Beef river," or the " Buffalo river." Buffaloes are said to have been found in the
valley of the stream by the early traders and explorers, and hence the name. It
was also called the Venango by the English, a name corrupted from the Seneca
term, In-un-gah, from which the word Weningo, and later Venango doubtless sprang.
The Rev. Timothy Alden, speaking of the derivation of this word, says : " This
name is given to French creek by the Senecas in consequence of a certain figure
carved on the bark of a tree near its bank, noticed at an early period after they
came to tliis region, and expressive of the representation made by the rude sculp-
ture ; but an explanation of which delicacy forbids us to record." The present
name, French creek, appears to have been given the stream by George Washington,
on the occasion of his visit to the French, referred to above. — History of Venango
County, p. 97 ; Washington's Journal and accompanying map. (Sabin's Reprints, No.
I.) On The Historical Map of Pennsylvania it is called also the Innungaii. " The
Delawares called French creek Attike. The name was sometimes written Onenge."
Heckewelder, Indian Names, &c., p. 46.
^*A rock lying in the eastern edge of the Allegheny river, nine miles below the
mouth of French creek, on the smooth inclined face of which (looking toward the
west) are certain rude hieroglyphics that made it be regarded by the Indians with
JV^sterTT. ^eTLnsylvaixicL. 19
of Attigue,^® Shannopin's tovvn,^^ on the east bauk of the Allegheny,
two miles above its junction with the Monongahela, which C6loron
called "the finest place on the river," and Logstown, which they des-
ignated Chiningu6,^' from its proximity to the river of that name.
Continuing in their course, and depositing their leaden plates at
various places they arrived at the mouth of the Miami. Ascending
that stream they came by a portage to the head waters of the Maumee,
descending which they reached Lake Erie, and returned, arriving
November 10th, at Montreal.
The way being thus opened the Allegheny was visited afterwards
by the Fi'ench, although no attempt was made to establish military
posts ; their visits being intended principally to win back or retain
the Indians, and prevent them from trading with the English, but
all, it was clear, with a view of obtaining ultimate possession, Jon-
caire-Chabert, to whom they had committed their aifairs in this part
of the country, purposed building a fort on the Allegheny at Venan-
go, in case he obtained permission from the Indians, but permission
was not granted, although he occupied the house at the mouth of
French creek from which Celoron had driven John Eraser.^- In May,
1751, he was at Logstown, where he held a council with the Indians,
but without being able to induce them to permit the French to take
possession of their lands.
superstitious awe, and won for it from the whites the name of " The Indian God."
The traveler on the Allegheny Valley Railroad may see the rock (the more southern
of two that lie near each other), but not the hieroglyphics, directly opposite the
115th mile post from Pittsburg.
^^The Indian village known to the English as Kittanning, which was destroyed by
Col. John Armstrong, September 8, 1756.— N. Y., Col. Doc. VII., 728 ; Animh of the
West, pp. 139-146 ; Montcalm and Wolf, vol. I. p. 4).
^"Although the description of this place, like that of many others in Celoron's
Journal, is vague, there can be no doubt of the village meant, both from his re-
marks and the meeting with the " old woman who was regarded as a queen," who
was evidently the Seneca Queen Aliquippa. — Mag. Amer. Hist., vol. II., p. 142 ;
Hist. Western Pa., App., p. 14.
"The precise location of this town has engaged no little attention from local
historians, some maintaining that it was on the south side, some on the north of the
Ohio ; but it is now generally admitted to have been on the latter, about eighteen
miles below the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. — Craig's His-
20 The FrencTh tn-
The moderation with which the French had conducted themselves
emboldened the Indians, and the Governor-General, the Marquis de
la Jonquiere,^^ who had succeeded the Marquis de la Galissoniere/'*
determined to send a body of troops into their territory to impress
them with a salutary fear, and awe them into submission. But death
frustrated his plans by carrying him off in May, (other authorities
give March), 1752. His successor, the Marquis du Quesue,^^ did
not arrive until a few months later ; when, finding the colony in the
iory of Pittsburg, p. 215 ; History of Western Pennsylvania, App., p. 14. From the
fact that Father Bonnecamp says : " We called it Chiningue, from its vicinity to the
rivei of that name," it would appear that the Beaver river was known to at least
some of the French and Indians by the name of one of its principal tributaries, the
Shenango, from which the name Chiningue is doubtless derived.
3^He was a Scotchman and one of the traders found by Celoron at the mouth of
French creek, whom he forced to leave. Being a gunsmith, he was useful to the
Indians, and was permitted to live among them. He is said to have been there "for
many years" before his expulsion. He was next found (1753-4) at the mouth of
Turtle creek, on the Monongahela, from which he was also forced by the French to
retire in 1754. — History of Venango County, p. 42 ; Washington's Journal.
^^He was descended from an old Catilonian family, and was born in Languedoc,
France, in 1696. He was a man of commanding presence and undaunted resolution,
but prone to avarice. He died at Quebec, May 17, 1752. — History of Braddock's Ex-
pedition, p. 28 ; The Olden Time, vol. II. p. 149.
3 4Poland Michel Barrin, Marquis de la Galissoniere, was born at Kochfort,
France, November 11, 1693 ; rose through different grades to that of admiral ; was
appointed Governor-General of Canada in 1747, — that province being under the
management of the marine department, — was energetic in maintaining the interests
of France ; returned to his native land late in 1749 ; and died at Nemour, Octo-
ber 26, 1756.
3 'Nothing is known of his early life ; but he was descended from Abraham Du-
quesne, the famous admiral of Louis XIV. In the latter part of 1754 he demanded
his recall to France in order to enter the naval service, with which he was more
familiar. Little more is known of him except that in 1758 he was appointed to the
command of all the French forces, sea and land, in Nortli America, and that soon
after he sailed in a small squadron, which was utterly discomfited by the English.
We must agree with the author of Braddock's Expedition, who remarks, that, " It is
unjust to the past age, that the names of such men as Duquesne, Dumas and Contre-
cceur should be consigned to oblivion. Thus we are left in ignorance of the period
of Duquesne's death, and of all save a single circumstance in his latter career." —
History of Braddock's Expedition, pp. 29-34. He was a rigid disciplinarian, and his
lofty bearing offended the Canadians; but he commanded their respect, and sliowed
that he was born to rule. — Montcalm and Wolf, Parkman, vol. I., p. 85,
Westerjz ^eTtTtsylvcLruta,. 21
greatest alarm, he made all haste to carry into execution the plans of
his predecessor.^^ The movements of the English, looking to the
colonization of the valley of the Ohio, gave additional impetus to his
energy ; but the difficulties with which lie had to contend, prevented
him from despatching his forces for some time. At length, as we
learn from the deposition of Stephen Coffen — who had been a prison-
er among the French for some time — taken January 10, 1754, an ex-
pedition consisting of three hundred men, in command of Mons.
Babeer (Babier?)^^ set out from Quebec in January, 1753, and, jour-
neying by land and ice, arrived at Fort Niagara in April ; whence, after
a rest of fifteen days, they continued their course by water to the
south-eastern shore of Lake Erie. Disembarking at Chadakoin, at
the mouth of Chautauqua creek, where Celoron liad landed four years
before, they prepared to build a fort. But Monsieur Morin came up
with an additional force of five hundred whites and twenty Indians
about the end of May, and assumed command of the expedition. ^^
Finding Chautauqua creek, which falls into the lake at this point,
and which had been adopted as the route to the Allegheny since
C^loron's expedition, too shallow to float canoes and especially bat-
teaux, he passed further west and came to a place which from the
peculiar formation of the lake shore they named Presqu' Isle, or,
the Peninsula, and which is now the site of the city of Erie. Here
the first fort, which was named Fort la Presqu' Isle, was built. It
was constructed of square logs, was about one hundred and twenty
feet square, and fifteen feet high, but had no port-holes, and it was
probably finished in June, 1753.^'-'
As soon as the fort was finished it was occupied by a garrison of
about one hundred men, in command of Captain Depontency ; and the
remainder of tie forces commenced cutting a road south to the head-
waters of Le Boeuf river, or French creek, a distance of about fifteen
miles, to the site of the present village of Waterford, Erie county, Pa.,
where they built a second fort similar to the first, but smaller. It
3«rAe Olden Time, vol. II., p. 150.
^ ''History of Pennsylvania, Dr. Egle, p. 694.
**Ibid ; History of Erie County, Laura G. Sanford, p. 29, — note.
3 ^History of Braddock's Expedition, p. 40 ; History of Erie County, pp. 43-44.
22 TfL& FrencTz tn
could not have been completed before the end of July. Washington
gives the following description of it in his Journal, under date of De-
cember 13, 1753 : " It is situated on the south or west fork of French
creek, and a small branch of it which forms a kind of island. Four
houses complete the sides. The bastions are made of piles driven
into the ground, standing more than twelve feet above it, and sharp at
the top, with port-holes for the cannon and loop holes for the small
arms to fire through. There are eight six-pound pieces mounted in each
bastion, and one piece of four-pound before the gate. In the bastions
are guard-house, chapel, doctor's lodging and commander's private
store; round which are laid platforms for the cannon and men to
stand on. There are several barracks without the fort for the soldiers'
dwellings," &c.
No sooner was work commenced on Fort le Boeuf than Monsieur
Bite was sent with fifty men to build a third fort at the mouth of
French creek, where an Indian village named Ganagara'hare then
stood. Finding it impossible to do so on account of the oppo-
sition of the Indians, he was forced to return. As the season was
now far advanced and the fort at Venango could not be undertaken,
M. Morin set out for Canada on the 28th of October, with the greater
part of the soldiers to go into winter quarters, leaving a small garri-
son in the two forts. He took measures at the same time to bring the
Indians to a more friendly turn of mind against the opening of
spring."***
With the return of good weather the French resumed their project,
aud with better success than before ; their agents had worked on the
minds of the savages with their accustomed success; the fortification
at the mouth of French creek was undertaken without opposition ;
and, says Dr. Eaton, of Franklin, who has devoted much attention to
our early history : " The fort here seems to have been completed in
April, 1754, under the superintendence of Captain Jimcaire. It was
not an elaborate work, but suited to the circumstances of the case. It
was called Machault^ ' after a celebrated French financier and politi-
*''History of Pennsylvania, Egle, p, 695.
■'^Jean Baptiste Machault was born at Amonville, France, December 10,
1701 ; in 1745 was controller of finance; in 1750 keeper of the seals j succeeded to
TVesterTZ J^eTZTZsyZj^ctrLza. 23
clan. The name is not a familiar one here, but in every instance in
which the fort is spoken of by the French authorities, either here or
in Canada, it is called Machault. By the English it was usually
called the French fort at Venango. Although grave doubts existed
until recently as to its exact location, yet facts have been brought to
light recently, that fix the site beyond all controversy. Its exact loca-
tion was on the bank of the Allegheny, about sixty rods south of the
mouth of French creek. . . . An ancient document describes it
in this wise : ' It is situated on a rising piece of ground, sixty
yards west of the Ohio (Allegheny). The north and south polygon
is forty-five yards, and the east and west polygon thirty-seven yards,
in perimeter. The bastions are built of saplings eight inches thick
and thirteen feet high, set stockade fashion. Parts of the curtains are
of hewn timber, laid lengthwise upon one another, which also make
one side of the barracks.' Inside the fort were six ranges of barracks,
two stories high^ with stone chimneys. Outside were long ranges of
barracks for soldiers."*"
As the object of these forts was not so much to form centres of
defensive or aggressive warfare, as depots for the stores landed from
the lake for transportation to Fort Duquesne, the real centre of oper-
ations, they were not, as Dr. Egle observes, remarkable either for
strength or engineering skill ; they had no earthworks of importance,
and were all on the same plan, though that of Machault was the
smaller of the three.^^ Their occupants, with the exception of a
small garrison, were generally workmen, but this was more especially
true of Le Boeuf, where canoes and batteaux were prepared for the
transportation of troops, munitions and provisions to Fort Duquesne.
This part of the oj)erations of the French was, properly speaking,
only the preparation for what they had in view ; the real work was
to be done at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela
rivers.
the colonial department in 1750 ; in 1794 was imprisoned by the Revolutionary
government ; and died the same year at the age of ninety-three. — History of Pennsyl-
vania, Egle, 1123, 1124.
^'^ History of Venango County, p. 44.
*^ History of Pennsylvania, Egle, p. 1122.
24 TTte FrencJh ztl
Although the principal occupation of the colonies at this time
would appear to have been quarrelling between the governors who rep-
resented the proprietaries, and the assemblies that represented the
people, still there was one honest Scotchman, Robert Dinwiddle,
Lieutenant-Governor of Virginia, who felt called upon to move in
favor of the interests of the mother country. In November, 1753,
he sent Major George Washington, already great, though but a
youth, with dispatches to the commander of the Frencii forces in the
northeastern part of the State, to obtain from them a reason for their
encroachments on the soil of the colonies, as well as to learn as far as
possible their future purpose, and to make such observations of their
armament, &c., as his opportunities might afford."*^ No choice could
have been better, as no choice could have been better for any posi-
tion to which the same illustrious man was named. Traversing the
virgin forests Jis best he could, he reached the term of his journey,
and returned with such information as still further roused the zeal
of the sturdy Scotchman. A body of native soldiers was sent in
January, 1754, to throw up a fortification at "The Forks," as the
confluence of the Allegheny and Monongaliela was then called, the
pioneers of which arrived on the 17th of February, 1754, a memor-
able day in our history, when the first attempt at a permanent set-
tlement of what is now the unrivaled manufacturing centre of
the world was laid."*^ A fortification, the main object of the ex-
pedition, was commenced at the confluence of the two streams. But
the French were not idle. Although not so successful as the English
in laying the foundations of permanent settlements, they were, as a
rule, more prompt in making their movements. With the opening
of spring, as we have seen, they were in the field, and, having com-
pleted Fort Machault, they descended the Allegheny in a fleet of
canoes and batteaux, to the number, variously estimated, but perhaps
little less than one thousand French, Canadians and Indians, with
eighteen cannon, in command of Contrecoeur. It was the 16th of
April, 1754, and the English, but forty in number, in command of
Ensign Ward, were summoned to an immediate surrender. Nothing
was left but to comply, and the French took possession of the un-
finished works. They immediately erected a fortification which
**The Olden Time, vol. I., p. 10.
* 5 Craig's History of Pittsburg, pp. 22, 23.
'Western ^eTLTLsyZvantcL. 25
was strengthened as time went on and the danger of attack in-
creased, and which was named Fort Duqiiesne, in honor of the
Governor-General of Canada. It was probably completed in the
early part of June/^ It was the key of the west, and immediately
became the central point in the great struggle that was then inaug-
urated for the possession of the Ohio valley and the country beyond ;
indeed, it would be but a trifling exaggeration to call it the central
point in the world's history at the time, being the bone of contention
between the two greatest powers of Europe. The whole country
west of the Allegheny mountains was in the hands of the French
and the savages, whom they knew so well how to manage, and the
frontier was menaced by their presence. The efforts of the combined
forces of the English and the colonists to dislodge them are too well
known to require a detailed treatment. On the 9th of July, 1755,
the battle of the Monongahela so disastrous to the English cause was
fought;'*'^ and from that time until the autumn of 1758 little appears
to have been done beyond guarding the frontiers as well as possible, if
we except the chronic struggle between the proprietary governors and
the assemblies in which the motto appears to have been : Beat the
governor, and then attack the French.
But the distance of the French from their base of supplies, and the
mutual jealousies of the rulers of New France,^ ^ rendered the po-
sition of the garrison of Fort Duquesne one not to be envied ; while
the slow but sure preparation of the mother country to dislodge them
could not but be a matter of apprehension ; for English rule was si-
lently taking possession of the New World, although at the same time
pursuing a suicidal policy, as we shall see. Insignificant successes
served to keep up the spirit of the French and maintain the attach-
es TAe Olden Time, vol. I., pp. 38, 39.
'^''History of BraddocKs Expedition, p. 226, et seq.
**General Montcalm, writing to his friend the Chevalier de Bourlamaque, gives
the following picture of the condition of affairs at Fort Duquesne just before its fall :
" Mutiny among the Canadians, who want to come home ; the officers busy with
making money, and stealing like mandarins. Their commander sets the example,
and will come back with three or four hundred thousand francs ; the pettiest ensign,
who does not gamble, will have ten, twelve, or fifteen thousand. The Indians don't
like Ligneris, who is drunk every day." — Montcalm and Wolf, vol. II., p. 168.
4
26 TTte, FrencTh trv
ment of the Indians. But the whole policy of the French was erroneous,
and the fall of their power was only a question of time. The English
were advancing under General Forbes, and though their movements
were slow, it was not solely due to the illness of the commander or
the difficulties of the route. It was well known that the Indians, al-
ways fickle, were wavering in their attachment to the French cause,
while the store of supplies for the whites was by no means large ; a
delay would therefore serve the two-fold purpose of exhausting the
patience of the Indians and of making them withdraw, and exhausting
tl'.e provisions of the whites and making it necessary for them to dismiss
a part of their forces. Both purposes were subserved.^ ^ And the defeat
of Major Grant within less than a mile of the fort, September 14th,
1758, was due more to his imprudence than to the valor or vigilance
of his enemies ; while the attack of the French and Indians on the
English advanced forces near Ligonier, October 12th, produced no
permanent result. The fall of the French power in the west was cer-
tain from the time the English set out under Forbes; but the sur-
render of Fort Frontenac, at the outlet of Lake Ontario, August
27th^° by cutting off the supplies made it impossible to hold the place
long. On the 24th of November, 1758, the fort was blown up and
abandoned, and the French, numbering about four hundred, besides In-
dians, withdrew, some down the Ohio, part across the country to
Presqu' Isle, and part with their commander, De Ligneris, to the fort
at the mouth of French creek. The following day the English took
possession of the smouldering ruins.^ '
The subjoined description of a fort which played so important a
part not only in the history of Pittsburg, but also in that of the
world, may not be uninteresting, especially to the many who have not
command of the few works in which it is to be found. It was given
with a diagram of the fort and its buildings by John McKinney, who
was detained a prisoner in the fort in the fall of 1756 : " Fort Du-
quesue," he writes, "is situated on the east side of the Monongahela
in the fork between that and the Ohio (Allegheny). It is four square,
has bastions at each corner; it is about fifty yards long, and about
*^ Montcalm and Wolf, chapter XXII.
''"Movtcalm and Wolf, vol. II., p. 128.
^^The Olden Time, vol. I., pp. 182-185.
'We.ste.rrL JPernxsylvcLThicc 27
forty yards wide. . . About half tlie fort is made of square logs,
and the other half next the water of stockades ; there are intrench-
ments cast up all around the fort, about seven feet high, which consist
of stockades driven into the ground near to each other and wottled
with poles like basket-work, against which the earth is thrown in a
gradual ascent; the steep part is next the fort, and has three steps all along
the intrenchment, for the men to go up and down to fire at an enemy;
these intrenchments are about four rods from the fort and go all
around, as well on the side next the water, as the land ; the outside of
the intrenchment next the water joins to the water. The fort has two
gates, one of which opens to the land side, and the other to the water
side, where the magazine is built ; that to the land side is, in fact, a
drawbridge, which in daytime serves as a bridge for the people, and
in the night is drawn up by iron chains and levers. . . . The
water sometimes rises so high as that the whole fort is surrounded
with it, so that canoes may go around it. . . The stockades are
round logs, better than a foot over, and about eleven or twelve feet
high ; the joints are secured by sjDlit logs; in the stockades are loop-
holes, made so as to fire slanting toward the ground. The bastions
are filled with earth, solid, about eight feet high ; each bastion has
four carriage guns, about four pounds ; no swivels, nor any mortars.
. . They have no cannon but at the bastions. . . There are no
pickets nor palisades on the top of the fort to defend it against scaling.
. . There are about twenty or thirty ordinary Indian cabins about
the fort." The subjoined description of the place as it appeared when
the English took possession of it, is from a letter of Captain John
Haslett ; " We arrived at six last night," (November 25, 1758,) he
says, " and found it in a great measure destroyed. There are two
forts, about two hundred yards distant ; the one small, built with im-
mense labor, but a great deal of strong works collected into very little
room, and stands on the narrow neck of land at the confluence of the
two rivers. 'Tis square, and has two ravelings, gabions at each corner,
&c. The other fort stands on the banks of the Allegheny, in form of
a parallelogram, but nothing so strong as the other; several of
the outworks are lately begun and still unfinished. There are, I
think, thirty stacks of chimneys standing, the houses all burnt
dowu."^*
s^TAe Olden Time, vol. I., pp. 39, 40 and 184, 185.
28 The FrencTt in
A few interesting questions here present themselves regarding Fort
Duquesne. Who planned the fort ; whence did it derive its name ;
where, precisely, was it located ; and who were its different command-
ers ? Fort Duquesne was planned by M. le Chevalier de Mer9ier, a
captain of artillery, who was engaged in a number of works of this
kind for the French in their Canadian possessions. He is represented
as an officer of considerable ability, but a leech on the public purse —
one of tiie large class that came to the New World with the determi-
nation of getting rich at any cost.^ ' The fort was named in honor of
the Marquis de Duquesne de Menneville, who succeeded the Marquis
de Jonquiere as Governor-General of Canada, in the summer of 1752 ;
and was located in the Point, at the extreme end of the neck of land
between the two rivers.^'*
That Fort Duquesne was built by M. Pierre Claude de Contrecoeur,
Esquire, Sieur de Beaudray, Captain of Infantry, and was under his
command for a time, has never been called in question. But there is
no little dispute as to the time when he gave place to his successor.
It was formerly generally asserted that he was in command at the
time of the battle of the Monongahela, more commonly known as
Braddock's Defeat ; and that he was succeeded early in the spring of
1756 by M. John Daniel, Esquire, Sieur Dumas, Captain of Infantry.
It was further stated that he was by no means disposed to favor
Beaujeu's proposed attack upon Braddock's army.^^ But the dis-
covery of the Register, now published, would appear to prove this long
entertained opinion erroneous; for in the entry of the latter's death,
he is said to be " commander of Fort Duquesne and of the array."
But on the other hand, there is not wanting evidence which would
go to show that Contrecoeur was in command. He was commander
of the fort from the date of its construction, but in the winter of
1754-5, he asked to be relieved, and the Marquis Duquesne, the
Governor-General, dispatched Captain Beaujeu to relieve him, order-
ing him at the same time to remain at the fort until after the engage-
ment with the English.^ *^ Tlie conflicting statements may, perhaps,
be reconciled in one of two ways : Either Beaujeu had not yet
^'"'History of Braddocl^s Expedition, p. 42, note,
^''See diagram above, p. 6.
^'"History of Braddock's Expedition, p. 221, 222.
*®Mr. J. G. Shea in Pennsylvania Mag. of Hist, and Biog., 1884, pp. 123, 124.
Westerrt I^e,n.rtsylvcLrLtcL. 29
assumed command, and then he is spoken of in the Register as com-
mander by anticipation, as one who held the commission but had not
yet begun to exercise the duties of the office to which he was appoint-
ed ; or else he was actually in command, as is stated in the Register,
but being dead, Contrecoeur could, without fear of contradiction, take
the honor of the victory to himself, and claim recognition from the
home government for his eminent services. We need not be sur-
prised at this statement, for it is well known that veracity was not among
the most eminent virtues of some of the representatives of France in
the New World. Nor would the Governor-General be likely to re-
fuse his countenance to the fraud, if proper influence were brought to
bear upon him.^'^ I am at a loss which of these opinions to embrace,
but regard the latter as the more probable. The reader can choose
for himself. But whatever may be said of the commander at the time
of the battle, Contrecoeur resumed command after that time. M.
Dumas was a subordinate officer under Beaujeu at the battle, and the
historian of General Braddock states that for his gallant conduct on
the occasion he " was early in the subsequent year promoted to suc-
ceed M. de Contrecoeur in the command of Fort Duquesne.^^ This
is a mistake. His name appears in the Register as commander at
least as early as September 18, 1755.
But while in the Register Contrecoeur is styled "commander-in-
chief of the forts of Duquesne, Presqu' Isle and the River an
Boeufs," and Dumas, "commander-in-chief of the forts of Presqu'
Isle, the River au Boeufs and Duquesne," Beaujeu is simply called
" commander of Fort Duquesne and of the army ;" which leads
me to infer that, if commander at all, he did not hold supreme
command as did the other two, but that his appointment was merely
provisional for Fort Duquesne and the army there, until such time as
another person could be named to the command of the French forces
in these parts.
"In the early autumn of 1757, (or perhaps sooner,") says the
author of the History of Braddock's Expedition, (p. 270,) " M. de
s
'For the corruption of Canadian officials see Mordcalm and Wolf, passim.
^History oj Braddock^ s Expedition, p. 224, note.
30 The JE^rencK tn
Ligneris relieved Dumas in his comrnaud." It was "sooner," for we
learn from the Register that M. de Ligneris was commander of Fort
Duquesne as early as December 27, 1756. But in justice to the his-
torian of General Braddock, it must be stated that his work was pub-
lished before the Register was brought to light, and that consequently
he was deprived of the information which it contains. De Ligneris
retained command until the French were finally expelled from the
soil of Pennsylvania.
On abandoning the fort, about one hundred of the French went
down the Ohio to the Illinois country, another hundred passed by
land to Presqu' Isle, and the remaining two hundred with de Lig-
neris went up the Allegheny to Venango. Fort Machault was
strengthened, and it was proposed to remain there until spring, and
defend the place, if attacked. With the opening of the river, an at-
tempt was to be made to retake the site of Fort Duquesne. Hav-
ing collected for that purpose a force of about seven hundred men and
a thousand Indians toward the end of June, they were about to em-
bark for the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela, when
word came that Fort Niagara was besieged. The importance of hold-
ing that point induced the French to abandon Fort Machault and at-
tempt to concentrate their forces there. They saw that their route to
the Mississippi by way of the Allegheny and Ohio was cut off by the
capture of Fort Duquesne ; and if Niagara should also fall into the
hands of the enemy, all communication with the west would be broken.
The stores and munitions that had been collected at Machault for the
expedition against Fort Pitt, were either distributed among the Indians
or destroyed, while the large fleet of canoes and batteaux which was
intended for their transportation was burnt.^^
The forts of Le Boeuf and Presqu' Isle having served as relays
during the occupation of the valley of the Allegheny, lost their im-
portance with the fall of the posts there, and were consequently
abandoned ; and the power of the French in Pennsylvania was ex-
tinguished forever.
The subsequent history of the French in North America" is soon
told. Fort Niagara was captured on the 5th of August, 1759, and
^^ History of Venango County, p. 61.
JVesterrz ^erLThsyZ-vamtcL, 31
with it the French were cut off from all communication with the
west; Quebec fell with the death of Montcalm, September 14, of the
same year; and with the capitulation of Montreal, September 8tli,
1760, all the possessions of the French east of the Mississippi, fell
into the hands of the English. But as the star of the French dominion
sank below the western horizon, the sun of American Independence
rose glorious in the east.
A word on this apparent triumph of England and I have done.
Long before the expulsion of the French from Canada, thoughtful
minds on both sides of the Atlantic foresaw that such an event must
be the prelude to the freedom of the colonies. The presence of the
French there both retarded their progress as a nation, and made them
feel their dependence on the mother country ; and no one understood
this better than the French themselves. " We have caught them at
last," said Choiseul, to those around him, on the definitive surrender
of New France ; and, at once giving up Louisiana to Spain, his eager
hopes anticipated the speedy struggle of America for separate exist-
ence. So soon as the sagacious and experienced Vergennes, the
French ambassador at Constantinople, heard the conditions of the
peace, he also said to his friends, and even openly to a British traveler :
"The consequences of the entire cessation of Canada are obvious. I
am persuaded England will ere long repent of having removed the
only check that could keep her colonies in awe. They stand no longer
in need of her protection ; she will call on them to contribute towards
supporting the burdens they have helped to bring on her ; and they will
answer by striking off all dependence."^" Sixteen years later the
hall in Philadelphia resounded with the Declaration of Independence.
^ ° History of the United States, — Bancroft, (centenary edition), vol. III., p. 305,
32 TKe F-rertcTx irt
^t tlie ^k^ine of l^ar^, oq " the "^eautiful l^iver."
Celebrated by Rev. Denys Baron, at Pittsburg, April 17, 1754.
The sun flashed up, on "the Beautiful River,"
Changing its ripples to ruby wine;
It danced and glittered with many a quiver,
It flowed as smoothly as poet's rhyme.
And the grand hills stooped to the River's flow,
—The "Beautiful River,"— long ago!
II.
Deep, and silent, and heavy, and tall,
The forest swept to the water's edge ;
The wild deer fled at the eagle's call,
The wild fox crept through the laurel hedge,
And the blue sky bent o'er the River's flow,
—The "Beautiful River,"— long ago!
III.
And then in the light of the April sun,
In the glorious flush of the morning sky,
A wonderful scene on the shore is begun,
A scene half earth, half heaven brought nigh,
"While the musical waves of the River flow
Past the wonderful vision — long ago!
IV.
Red men bow down on the humid sod.
With the dark-eyed soldiers of sunny France,
And the vested priest of the living God,
Lifts the Sacred Host to their rev'rent glance.
And naught breaks the hash but the River's flow,
That April morning— long ago!
'Western. f^eThnsylvcLTtia. 33
V.
'Tis the Holy Mass! in that wilderne^ss!
And the leaf screened altar, — our Lady's Shrine ; —
This virgin forest her name will bless
With a title brought o'er the stormy brine,
"Our Lady's Assumption"! close to the flow
Of the " Beautiful River"— long ago!
#** * * ****
VI.
But the Ked men flee, and the warriors die,
And the smouldering ashes seem to tell
To the moaning silence as years roll by
That all is lost, and the name as well ;
But Faith has a seed that the Angels know
Sowed deep, by the "Beautiful River's" flow.
VII.
Sweet Mother of Mercy! 'twas thine, thine own,
This favored spot of a city's birth.
Ere our spangled flag to the world was known,
Or our cry of freedom awoke the earth,
Thine was The Shrine at the River's flow
The "Beautiful River"— long ago!
VIII.
And thus, as the years roll on and pass,
We kneel at a sweet Memorial Shrine,
And our thoughts drilt back to that First lone Mass,
When a stranger-tongue, called this chapel thine,
Where the Beautiful River seemed to bless
"Mary's First Shrine in the Wilderness"!
Mercedes.
St. Xavier's, 1885.
REGISTRES
DES
BA PTESMES
ET
SEPULTURES
R_^
I SE SONT FAITS AU
Foi\T DuqUESNE,
Pendant les annees
1753. 1754, '755 & '75^-
NOUVELLE YORK, ISLE DE MANATE,
De la Presse Cramoisy de Jean-marie Shea,
M. DCCC. LIX.
REGISTER
OF THE
BAPTISMS
AND
INTERMKNTS
WHICH TOOK PLACE AT
D
J
OI\T JJUqiJESNE/
During the years
i753> 1754, 1755' & 1756.
NEW YORK, MANHATTAN ISLAND,
T"rom the Cramoisy- Press of John Gu.mary Shea.
1859.
36 ^^efcLce.
AVANT=PROPOS.
^^OMME Registre de paroisse, les pages suivanfes ne m^riteroient
pas Vimpi'ession, mais ellessont (Vun grand inUrH par la lumi^re
qu'eUes jettent s^ir la demarche hardie que jireni les Francais, en s'em-
parant de la langue de terre qui domine VOhio, aprh en avoir chass^
les Colons de la Virgiiiie ; et ces pages deviennent surtout interessanies
par les detaih curieux qu'elles fournissent sur la Bataille du Monon-
gahela, et son Heros Daniel Li6nard, Sieur de Beaujeux.
Avant de marcher contre Braddock, on le voit id se prosterner devant
Vautel, recevoir les sacrements, et se preparer d lamort. Evidemment,
U ne comptait pas revenir vainqueur de Varm^e angloise si importante et
si nombreiLse ; mais en noble Framois il croyait devoir succomber dans
une lutie si in^gale. Son courage et son devouement ont inspire ci ses
guerriers des esperances au dehl des siennes, et simple capitaine dans
les troupes de la Marine, il est mort au milieu de la m^le, aprh avoir
remporte une des plus glorieuses victoires mentionnees dans les Annales
Francoises ; vidoire si complete, que les historiens Anglois et Amer'i-
cains n!en font mention, que sous le nom de la Deroufe de Braddock.
Il paroit que les troupes victorieuses port^rent au fort le corps de
leur commandant, et ne V ay ant enterre que 3 jours apres la batailUe,
estd pr^umer qu^etles luijirent des obs^ques pompeuses, quoiqu'dpr^ent
il n^y a rien d montrer oh reposent les cendres de Beaujeux.
S^reface. 37
PREFACB.^
yJS a parish register the following pages would not merit publica-
•^^ Hon ; hut they are of great interest from the light they shed on
the daring step of the French in taking possession of the point of
land which commands the Ohio, after having driven out the colonists
of Virginia ; and these pages become especially interesting on account
of the details they furnish of the battle of the Monongahela, and its hero,
Sieur de Beajeu.*
Before marching against Braddock he is seen prostrate before the
altar receiving the Sao'aments and preparing himself for death. Evi-
dently he did not expect to return victorious over the English army, so
formidable and numerous ; but as a noble Frenchman he felt it his duty
to lay down his life in so unequal a contest. His courage and self-sac-
rifice inspired his warriors witli hopes beyond his own, and, though a
simple captain in the marine forces," he died in the midst of the con-
test, after having won one of the most glorious victories mentioned in
the French annals, a victory so complete that both English and Ameri-
can historians mention it only under the name of BraddocKs Defeat.
It appears that the troops carried back to the fort the body of their
commander, and, not having buried it until three days after the battle^
it is to be presumed that they rendered it the highest military honors,
although at present nothing marks the spot where repose the ashes of
Seaujeu.
38
Register of
^^j^XTEAIT general des Sepultures, mariages et Baptesnies qui se
P^J sont fait pendant la campagne de la Belle Riviere, parafe et
^"*>-^ sign^ Marin, I'original desquels est rest^ au fort Duquesne ^
la Belle Rivifere, sous le titre de I'Assomption de la Ste. Vierge.
Sepulture
de
Jean Bap.
Texier.
L'an mile sept cinquante trois le onsierae de Juliet est
decede dans le dit parti Jean Baptiste Texier de la paroisse
de Montreal mary de Charlote Cabassier veuve de feu La
Souche, apr&s avoir et6 confesse receu le St. Viatique et le
sacrement de I'extreme onction, son corp- a ete inhume
avec les ceremonies accoutumees dans un endroit dn camp
de la presqu'ile destine pour le cimitiere En foy de quoi
j'ai signe
fr. Gabriel Anheuser
p" recolet aumonier du party.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante trois le dernier de Juliet
Sepulture est decide dans le dit party Jean Francois Aubert de la
Jean paroisse de St. Charlede Sedan, diocese de Reims soldat de
A 'h^^^^ la compagnie de Dumas aprfe avoir ete confesse receu le
St. Viatique et le sacrement d'extreme onction son corps
a este inhume avec les ceremonies ordinaires dans un en-
droit du camp de la presqu'ile destine pour le cimitiere
en foy de quoy j'ai sign6
fr Denys Baron P. R.
aumonier dans le dit party.
f. Gabriel Anheuser
p''' R. aumonier du party.
Sepulture
de
St. George
soldat
L'an mille sept cent cinquante trois, le vint d'Aout est
d^eede dans le dit party St. George soldat de la compagnie
de Fouville, incorpore dans le detachment de M"" La
Ronde, son corps a ete inhume avec les ceremonies ordi-
naires dans androit du camp de la Riviere aux beufs des-
tine pour le cimitiere.
f. Gabriel Anheuser
P. R. Aumonier
FoTt DvLQixesTxe.
39
^ENERAL extract from the interments; marriages" and bap-
^-^^k ^^'"^'"^ wliich took place during the campaign of the Beau-
^^^ tiful River/ flourished and signed, Marin, ^ the original" of
which is preserved in Fort Duquesne at the Beautiful River, under
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three,
on the eleventh of July, died, in the said'" detachment,
John Baptist Texier of the parish of Montreal, husband
of Charlotte Cabassier, widow of the late la Souche,
after having confessed, received the Holy Viaticum and
the sacrament of Extreme Unction. His remains were
interred with the customary ceremonies in that portion of
the camp of Presqu' Isle, set apart for a cemetery. In
testimony whereof I have signed.
Friar Gabriel Anheuser, ' '
Recollect ' * priest, chaplain of the detachment.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three,
on the last day of July, died in the said detachment John
Francis Aubert, of the parish of St. Charles of Sedan, in
the diocese of Rheims, a soldier of the company of
Dumas,' ^ after having confessed, received the Holy Viati-
cum and Extreme Unction. His remains were interred
with the customary ceremonies in that portion of the
camp of Presqu' Isle, set apart for a cemetery. In testi-
mony whereof I have signed :
Fr. Denys BarOxV, P. R.,'''
Chaplain with said detachment.
Fr. Gabriel Anheuser, P. R.,
Chaplain of the detachment.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three,
on the twentieth of August, died in the said detachment,
St. George a soldier of the company of Fouville, incor-
porated into the detachment of Mr. La Ronde. His re-
mains were interred with the customary ceremonies in that
part of the camp of French creek, ' ^ set apart for the
cemetery. Fr. Gabriel Anheuser, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of John
Baptist
Texier.
Interment
of John
Francis
Aubert.
Interment
of St.
George,
soldier.
40
Register of
Sepulture
de la
franchise
soldat.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante trois le sixieme septem-
bre est decede le nomme Etieune dit La frauchisse cor-
poral de la compaguie de Fouville iucorpore dans celle de
Mr La Ronde, apr^s avoir este confesse et receu le sacre-
ment d'extreme onction son corps a este inhume avec les
c^r^monies ordinaries dans le ciniitiere de la Riviere aux
Boeufs le sixiesme jour du dit moy et an que dessus on foy
de quoi j'ai signe
f. Gabriel Anheuser
P'"^® R. Aumonier.
Sepulture
de
Jerome
auge
habitant
de la
paroisse
de la
pointe
aux
trembles
de quebec
L'an mille sept cent cinquante trois le seiz Septembre est
decede dans le fort de la Riviere aux boeufs Jerome Auge
habitant de la pointe aux trembles de quebec apres avoir
receu les sacremens de penitence de viatique et d'extreme
onction son corps a este inhume dans le lieu destine pour
le cimitiere et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous
ptre Recolet soussign^ aumonier au dit fort et pendant la
campagne de la belle Riviere en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron
p. R. Aumonier.
Sepulture
de
Mr Marin
Comman-
dant gen-
eral de
I'armee de
la belle
Riviere.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante trois le vint neuf Octobre
est d§ced6 sur les quatre heures et demie du soir dans le fort
de la Riviere aux boeufs sous le titre de St. Pierre Monsieur
Pierre paul escuyer Sieur de Marin chevalier de I'orde mili-
taire et royal de St. liouis capitaine d'ynfenterie etcommend-
ant general de I'armee de la Belle Riviere apres avoir recue
les sacremens de penitence d'extreme onction et de viatique
age de soixante et trois ans son corps a este inhume dans
le cimitiere du mesme fort par nous preste Recolet aumo-
nier du dit fort et pendant lu campagne de la belle Riviere
ont estes present a son inhumation Monsieur de Repentigny
commandant de la susdite arra6e et capitaine d'infenterie
de Messieurs du muys lieutenant dynfeuterie Benois lieu-
For't 'DixqvLesrhe. 41
In the year one thoasantl seven hundred and fifty-tliree, Interment
on the sixth of September, died, Stephen, surnanied La Stephen,
Franohisse,'" a corporal in the company of Fouville, incor- •'^o^ier.
porated into that of Mr, I-ra Ronde, after having confessed
and received the sacrament of Extreme Unction. His re-
mains were interred with the customary ceremonies in the
cemetery of French creek, on the sixth day of the said
month and year a? above. In testimony whereof I have
signed :
Fr. Gabriel Anheuskr, P. E,.,
CliapUiiu.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three,
on the sixteenth of September, died at the fort of Frencli interment
creek, Jerome Auo;c, an inhabitant of the Point an Treni- of Jerome
- , n ^ • • J I Auge an
ble (in the province) of Quebec, after having received the inhabitant
sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction. '^\ ^}^'^
' parish 01
His remains were interred in the j)lace set apart for a ceme- the Point
tery, and that with the customary ceremonies, by us, the ''^"jji^'^^J""
undersigned Recollect priest, chaplain of tlie said fort Quebec
and during the cami)aign'^ of the Beautiful River. In
testimony whereof we have signed:
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three,
on the twenty-ninth of October at half-past four in the interment
evening, died in the fort of French creek, under the title ^, ^Marin
of St. Peter, '^ Monsieur Peter Paul, Esquire, Sieur de Conmian-
Marin,'^ Chevalier (Knight) of the royal military order cMef'of
of St; Louis, Captain of Infiintry and Commander-in- the army of
Chief of the army of the Beautiful River, aged sixty- f^i River,
three years, after having received the sacraments of
Penance, Extreme Unction, and the Viaticum. His re-
mains were interred in the cemetery of the same fort, by
us. Recollect priest, chaplain of the said fort and during
the campaign of the Beautiful River. There were present
at his interment Monsieur Repentigny, commander of the
42
Register of
teuant dynfenterie de simblini major au susdit fort Ijaforce
garde des magazius lesquels ont signe avec nous
Le Gardeiir de Repentigiiy
Laforce Beuois du muys
J. Depre Siniblim
fr. Denys Baron
p*™ recolet Aumonier.
Sepulture
de Louis
Rivare
habitant
de paroisse
de
St. Charles
dans de
Riviere
de
Chambly.
L'aii mille sept cent cinquante quatre le neuf febvrier est
decede dans le fort de la riviere aux boenfs sous le titre de
S' Pierre, Louis Rivare garcon habitant de la paroisse de
S* Charle en la Riviere de Ohanibly age d'environ de vint
cinq ans apres avoire receu les sacremens de penitence de
viatique et d'extrem onction : son corps a este inhuni6
avec les ceremonies dans le cimitieredu susdit fort par nous
prestre Recolet soussign6 aumonier au dit fort et pendant
la campagne de la belle Riviere en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron
p. R. Aumonier.
Sepulture
de
Guiaulme
Thybeault
garcon
habitant
de la
paroisse de
St. Thomas
dit La
pointe a la
Caille au
has de
Quebec.
L'au mille sept cent cinquante quatre le Onz de mars
est d^c^le dans le fort de la Riviere aux boeufs sous le titre
de St. Pierre guiaulme Thybeault garcon habitant de la
paroisse de St. Thomas ditte La pointe a la caille au bas de
quebec age d'envirou de vint huit ans apres avoir receu les
saints sacremens de penitence dEucaristie et d'extrem
onctiou son corps a este inhume dans le cimitiere du susdit
fort par nous preste Recolet soussign^ aumonier du Roy
au dit fort et pendant la campagne de la Belle Riviere
en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
Fort ^ULqixesTLe. ,
43
above mentioned army and captain of infantry ; Messienrs
du Mnys, lieutenant of infantry; Benois, lieutenant of in-
fantry; de Simblim, major at the abovementioned fort;
(and) Laforce,^" guard of the magazine, who signed with us.
Le Gardeur de Repentigny,
Laforce, Benois, du Muys,
J. Deprc Simblim.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the ninth of February, died in the fort of French
creek, under the title of St. Peter, Louis Rivare, unmar-
ried, a member of the parisii of St. Charles on the Cham-
bly river, aged about twenty-five years, after having re-
ceived the sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and Ex-
treme Unction. His remains were interred with tlie cere-
monies in the cemetery of tiie abovementioned fort by us,
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the said fort
and during the campaign of the Beautiful River. In tes-
timony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Louis
Rivare,
a member
of the
parish of
St. Charles,
on the
Chambly
river.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the eleventh of March, died in the fort of French
creek, under the title of St. Peter, William Thybeault,
unmarried, a member of the parish of St. Thomas, called
Quail Point, below Quebec, aged about twenty- eight years,
after having received the sacraments of Penance, the
Eucharist and Extreme Unction. His remains were in-
terred in the cemetery of the abovementioned fort by us,
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King, at
the said fort and during the campaign of the Beautiful
River. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.^'
Interment
of
William
Thybeault,
unmarried,
of the
parish of
St. Thomas,
called
Quail Point
below
Quebec.
44 JtegzsteT of
Sspulture L'an mille sept cent einquante quatre le vint iuin est
de Tous , T, ^ ^ o -r^ i lA n t-». •
saint Boyer tieceae daus Je tort JJuquesne a la jBelle Kiviere, toussaint
dit Bien- Bover dit bieiitoiinie garcon habitant de St. Pierre en la
toume . . , , .
garcon j)rairie de la Magdeleine age de vint deux ans ou environ
St ^Pierre* ^P*'^'^ avoir receu les S*^ sacremens de penitence de viatiqne
en la et d'extrem onction son corps a este inhume dans de lieu
^'^Magde- ^ <^^estine pour cimitiere an dit fort et cela avec les cere-
leine. monies ordinaires par nous preste Recolet sousigne anmo-
nier au dit fort et pendant la campagne de la Belle riviere
ainsi avons signe
Fr. Denys Baron p**^® R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent einquante quatre le quinze de jnliet
Sepulture ggj. (jg^ede dans le fort duquesne dejardin garcon habi-
Dejardin tant de Ste. Rose de Lima en lisle jesus age denviron de
habitant de-.,- v • lo^o ^
Ste. Kose ^ '• "-^'^'^ ^"^ apres avoir receu les bts oacremens de peni-
de tence et dextrem onction son corps a est6 inhume dans le
lisle de lieu destine pour cimitiere et cela avec les ceremonies or-
Jesus. dinaires par nous preste Recolet soussigne aumonier au dit
fort en foy de quoy avons signe
Fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquente quatre le trois aout est
Sepulture deced^ dans le fort duquesne Joseph del isle garcon habi-
Joseph *^"^ ^^ longueuille age d'environ de vint six ans apres
Delisle avoir receu les saints sacrements de penitence et d'extrem
habitant onction SOU corps a este inhume dans le lieu destine pour le
^^ cimitiere et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous
preste Recolet sous signe aumonier au dit fort en foy de
quoy avons sign6
Fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four, Interment
on the twentieth of June, died in Fort Duquesne on the Toussaint
Beautiful River, Toussaint, (All saints,) Boyer, styled Bi- g^^J^^^^i.
entourne, unmarried, an inhabitant of St. Peter's on entoume,
the prairie de la Magdeleine, aged twenty-two years, or there- an"inhabi-'
abouts, after having received the sacraments of Penance tant of
the Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His remains were' on the
interred in the place set apart for the cemetery at the said P^^^^® ^"^^
fort, and that with the customary ceremonies, by us, Kec- leine.
ollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of said fort and
during the campaign of the Beautiful River. Thus we have
signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the fifteenth of July, died in Fort Duquesne, — Interment
De Jardin, an inhabitant of St. Rose of Lima, on the De Jardin,
Isle of Jesus, aged about twenty-three years, after hav- t^nt of
ing received the sacraments of Penance and Extreme St. Kose
. ^^. . . I'll of Lima on
Unction. His remains were interred in the place set apart the Isle of
for the cemetery, and that with the customary ceremonies Jesus.
by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the
said fort. In testimony whereof we liave signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the third of i^ugust, died in Fort Duquesne, Joseph Interment
Delisle, unmarried, an inhabitant of Longueville, aged Joseph
about twenty-six years, after having received the sacra- ^n^^arried
meiits of Penance and Extreme Unction. His remains an inhabi-
were interred in the place set apart for the cemetery, and Longue-
that with the customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect priest, fiiie.
the undersigned chaplain of the said fort. In testimony
whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
46
^egiste-p of
Sepulture
d'Ambroise
Boivin
homme
marie
habitant
de
La Bale
St. Paul au
bas de
Quebec.
L'an luille sept cent cinquante quatre le sixi^me d'Aout
est decede dans le fort duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomp-
tion de la Ste Vierge Ambroise boivin homme raari^
habitant de la baye de St. Paul au bas de quebec apres
avoir receu les Sts sacremens de penitence et d'extrem
onction son corps a ete inhume dans le lieu destine pour
le cimitiere et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous
prestre Recolet soussigne Aumonier du Roy au dit fort en
foy de quoy avons signe.
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
Nous Capitaine d'ynfenterie commandant general du party de la
belle Riviere des forts de la presqu'ille de la riviere aux boeufs et de
celui de duquesne certifions que les extraits cy dessus sont conformes
a I'original fait au fort duquesne le dix daout mille sept cent cin-
quante quatre.
Vu
CONTRECCEUR.
Fovt IDzzQzzesjze.
An
In the year oue thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the sixth of August, died at Fort Duquesne, under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, ^^ (a man)
named Ambrose Boivin, married, an inhabitant of the
bay of St. Paul, below Quebec, after having received the
holy sacraments of Penance and Extreme Unction. His
remains were interred in the place set apart for the cem-
etery,^ ^ and that with the customary ceremonies, by us,
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King, at
the said fort. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Ambrose
Boivin,
married, an
inhabitant
of the Bay
of St. Paul,
below
Quebec.
We, Captain of Infantry, Commander-in-Chief of the detach-
ment of the Beautiful River, of the forts of Presqu' Isle, French
creek, ^'* and Duquesne, certify that the above extracts conform
to the original made at Fort Duquesne on the tenth of August, one
thousand seven hundred and fifty-four.
Approved,
CONTRECCEUR.
48 JEtegtster of
^^^^E present Registre contenant cinq feuillets blancs non conmris
Sjtt^ le present a este cotte et parapli^ par nous capitaine dynfenterie
c<^ conimendant general du party de la Belle Riviere des forts de la
presquille de la riviere aux Boeiifs et de cehiy de duquesne, lequel
servira a enregistrer les extrais mortuaires haptemes et sepultures qui se
seront au dit fort duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la Ste
Vierge lequel registre servira au dits enregistremens pendant le
restaut de cette annee mille septcent cinquante quatre.
Fait double au fort duquesne le trante et un d'aout mille septceut
cinquante quatre.
Fort duQuesne Riv^'' Oio,
CONTRECCEUR.
Sepulture I/an mille sept cent cinquante quatre le six Septembre
T T} est deced6 uu fort duquesne sous le titre de l'Assonii)tion
Jean Beau ^ ^ '
garcon hab- de la Ste Vierge a la belle Riviere le Lomme J. beau
la Kiviere I'^ibitaut daus la riviere de Cliambly Seigneury de Con-
deChambly trecceur, lequel estoit age de vint ans on environ apres
seigneury . , . ^ , . , . .
de Centre avou' receu les saints sacremens de penitence de viatique
Cceur. gj^ d'extreme onction son corps a este inhume dans le
cimitiere du meme fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordi-
uaires par nous preste Recolet sous sigue aumonier du Roy
au dit fort Duquesne ainsi avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante quatre le douze septem-
Sepulture bre est deced^ au fort duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomp-
t't Marin ^'^" ^^ ^^ ®^^ Vierge a la belle Reviere Henry Marin
donriestique domestique de M^' Drouliou ag6 de quinze ans au environ
Droulion. apres avoir receu les Sts Sacremens de penitence, de via-
tique et d'extrem onction son corps a est6 inhume dans le
cimitiere du susdit fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordi-
naires par nous preste Recolet sous signe aumonier du Roy
au dit fort ainsi avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt ^TJLqvLesne. 49
[HE present Register, containing five blank leaves, not including
this one, has been arranged and signed by us, Captain of In-
fantry, Commander-in-Chief of the detachment of the Beauti-
ful River, of the forts of Presqu' Isle, French creek,'- ^ and Duquesne ;
which will serve to register the mortuary extracts,'^ baptisms, and
interments, which will take place at the said Fort Duquesne, under
the title ot the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, which Register
will servo for the said registration during the remainder of this year,
one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four.
A duplicate of this (register) was made at Fort Duquesne on the
thirty-first of August, in the year one thousand seven hundred and
fifty-four. CONTRECCEUR.
Fort Duquesne, Ohio River.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four. Interment
on the sixth of September, died at Fort Duquesne, under j^},,^ g^j^,,
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the unmarried,
Beautiful River, (a man) named John Beau, an inhabitant ^^<^ ^^ ^jjg
at the Chambly river. Seigniory of Contrecceur,^^ who <-'hambly
, , river
was aged twenty years, or thereabout, after having received Seignio'rv
the sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme of<-^ontre-
coeur.
Unction. His remains were interred in the cemetery of
the same fort, and that with the customary ceremonies, by
us. Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at
the said Fort Duquesne. Thus we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the twelfth of September, died at Fort Duquesne, Interment
under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin jj^j^ T^^^in
at the Beautiful River, Henry Marin, servant of Mr. servant of
Droulion, aged fifteen years, or thereabout, after having ii,jn
received the sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and
Extreme Unction. His remains were interred in the
cemetery of the abovementioned fort, and that with the
customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect priest, the under-
signed chaplain of the King at the said fort. Thus we
have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
7
50 Itegtster of
Sepulture UdiW mille sept cent cinquaute quatre le quinze Sep-
Josepli tembre est deced6 an fort duquesne sous le titre de I'As-
■fvco^hlh- '^o^M^^^'on de la Ste Vierge a la belle Riviere le noinra^
itant de Joseph Brochns de la paroisse de St. Michel au bas de
St. Michel r\ \ ^ ^ ^y • ' i. ^ •
au bas de ^"Guec age d environ vingt trois ans on environ aj)res
Quebec, avoir receu les Sts Sacreniens de penitence, de viatique et
d'extreni onction son corps a est6 inhume dans le cinii-
tiere du meme fort par nous pte Recolet soussigne aumon-
ier du Roy au dit fort ainsi nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baeon P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquanle quatre le sixe de Septem-
Sepulture ^j-e est decede au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomp-
Francois tion de la Ste Vierge a la Belle Riviere francois de I'orme
Delorme estant maitre charpentier au fort Duquesne et natif de la
charpentier . i ri i t-» i
an fort paroisse du feault au Recolet, age de trente ans ou environ
Duquesne. j^pj.^.g avoir recue les sacreniens de penitence, de viatiq et
d'extrem onction son corps a este inhume dans le ciniitiere
du raeme fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par
nous ptre Recolet sous sign6 aumonier du Roy au susdit
fort ainsi avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquaute quatre le trente Octobre
Sepulture est decede au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
Alexandre de la Ste Vierge a la belle Riviere Alexandre Marquis de
Marquis de j^^ pgroisse de Camouraskas au basde Quebec, a^e de ving-t
la |)aroisse ^ * _ ^ -v ; © e
de cinq ans ou environ apres avoir receu les sts sacreniens de
"aTka*^ penitence de viatique et d'extreni onction son corps a est6
au bas de inhume dans le ciniitiere du menie fort et cela avec les cere*
monies ordinaires par nous preste Recolet soussigne Au-
monier du Roy au dit fort ainsi nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Fort ^ijLqjJL€.sj\,e.
51
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the fifteenth of September, died at Fort Duquesne,
under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
at the Beautiful River, (a man) named Joseph Brochus, of
the Parisli of St. Michael, below Quebec, aged twenty-
three years, or thereabout, after having received the sacra-
ments of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction.
His remains were interred in the cemetery of the same
fort, by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of
the King at the said fort. Thus we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the sixteenth of September, died at Fort Duquesne,
under the title of the Assuniption of the Blesse'd Virgin
at the Beautiful River, Francis de L'Orme, being master
carpenter at Fort Duquesne, and a native of the parish of
the Sault an Recollect, aged thirty years, or thereabout,
after having received the sacraments of Penance, the
Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His remains were in-
terred in the cemetery of the same fort, and that with the
customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect priest, the under-
signed chaplain of the King at the abovementioued fort.
Thus we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four,
on the thirteenth of October, died at Fort Duquesne,
under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
at the Beautiful River, Alexander Marquis, of the parish
of Camouraskas, below Quebec, aged twenty-five years,
or thereabout, after having received the holy sacraments
of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His
remains were interred in the cemetery of the same fort,
and that with the customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at the said
fort. Thus we hav« signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Joseph
Brochus,
unmarried,
an inhabit-
ant of
St. Michael,
below
Quebec.
Interment
of
Francis
de L'Orme,
carpenter at
Fort Du-
quesne.
Interment
of
Alexander
Marquis,
of the
parish of
Camouras-
kas, below
Quebec.
52
Jtegister of
Bapteme L'an mille sept cent cinquante quatre le trois Novem-
Denise ^I'e a este baptise avec les ceremonies ordinaires Denise
^^Louve^^ sauvagesse Louve ag4 de douze ans ou environ laquelle
desiroit ardament le st bapteme que nous preste Recolet
soussigne Aumonier du Roy du fort Duquesne le luy
avons administre en foy de quoy nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante quatre le cinq Novem-
Sepulture bre est decede aupres du fort Duquesne Denise Sauvagesse
Denise Louve age de douze ans ou environ ayant este baptisee
Sauvagesse deux jours auparavant son corps a este inhume dans le
cimitiere du fort Duquesne et cela avec les ceremonies
ordinaires par nous ptre Recolet soussigne Aumonier du
Roy an dit fort en foy de quoy nous avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt DvLquLesTte.
53
In tlie year one thousand seven linndred and fifty-four,
en the third of November, was baptized with the custom-
ary ceremonies, Denise,-'' a Loup (Mohegan) Indian, aged
twelve years, or thereabout, who ardently desired holy
baptism, which we, Recollect priest, the undersigned chap-
lain of the King at Fort Duquesne, administered to her.
In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Baptism
of
Denise, a
Loup
Indian.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty- four,
on the fifth of November, died near Fort Duquesne,
Denise, a Loup (Mohegan) Indian, aged twelve years, or
thereabout, who had been baptized two days before. Her
remains were interred in the cemetery of Fort Duquesne,
and that with the customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at the said
fort. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Denise, a
Loup In-
dian.
.«§K^
54
JEtegzsteT of
|E present Registre couteuant sept feiiliets blancs uon compris le
I^ present a este cotte et paraplie par nous capitaine dynfenterie cotn-
raendant en chef des forts Diiqiiesne de la presqu'ille et de la
Riviere aux boeufs lequel servira a enr6gistrer Les baptemes, niariages
et sepultures qui se seront au dit fort Duquesne a la belle Riviere sous
le tistre de L'Assomption de la tres S*® Vierge et cela pendant la
presente an nee mille sept cent cinquante cinq Lequel Registre a est6
remis au pfere Denys Baron p**' Recolet aumonier du Roy au fort
Duquesne fait au dit fort le premier Janvier mille sept cinquante
cinq
CONTRECCEUR.
Fort Duquesne, R^*' Oio.
Sepulture
de
Pierre Lan-
gevin gar-
Qon
habitant de
la paroigse
de L'imma-
culee Con-
ception
ditte La-
pointe
Oliver de
Chambly.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le trois de
Janvier dans le fort Duquesne, a la belle Riviere sous le
titre de L'Assomption de la tres S**^ Vierge est deced6
Pierre Langevin gar§on habitant de la paroissee de L'im-
macul6e Conception ditte La pointe Olivier a Chambly
aprfes avoir receu les S*^ Sacremens de j)enitence de via-
tique et d'extrem onction son corps a este inhume dans le
Cimitiere du raeme fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordin-
aires par nous ptre Recolet aumonier du Roy au dit Fort
en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Sepulture
de
Pierre
Texier gar-
con habit-
ant de la
paroisse de
Ste. Anne
Seignerie
de
Gatineaux
du
gouverne-
ment des 3
Rivieres.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le quinze Janvier
dans le fort Duquesne a la belle Riviere sous le titre de
I'Assomption de la trfes S*® Vierge estedeced6 Pierre Texier
garcou habitant de la paroisse de S*® Anne, seignerie de Ga-
tineaux du gouverneraent des Trois Rivieres age d'euviron
de vint sept ans, apres avoir receu les 8*'* Sacremens de
penitence de viatique et d'extrem onction son corps a est6
inhume dans le cimitiere du mesme fort et cela par nous
pte Recolet premier aumonier du Roy au dit fort Du-
quasne : en foy de quoy avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt ^ixqizesTxe. 55
[HE present Register, containiug seven blank leaves, not in-
^W» eluding this one, has been arranged and signed by us. Captain
is*^^ of Infantry, Commander-in-Chief of forts Duquesne, Presqu'
Isle, and French creek, which will serve to register the baptisms,
marriages and interments which may take place at the said Fort Du-
quesne at the Beautiful River, under the title of the Assumption of
the most Blessed Virgin, during the present year, one thousand seven
hundred and fifty-five; which register is entrusted to Father Denys
Baron, Recollect priest, chaplain of the King at Fort Duquesne.
Made at the said fort on the first of January, in the year one thou-
sand seven (hundred) and fifty-five. Contrecceur.
Fort Duquesne, Ohio River.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five. Interment
on the third of January, in Fort Duquesne, under the title Langevln,
of the Assumption of the most Blessed Virgin, died Peter unmarried,
Langevin, unmarried, an inhabitant of the parish of the ant of the
Immaculate Conception, called the Point Olivier on the pa"sh of
"^ . ' the Immac-
Ciiambly, after havnig received the holy sacraments of ulate Con-
Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His re- caffiThe
mains were interred in the cemetery of the same fort, and Point Oli-
that with the customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect priest, ^chanibly?
the undersigned chaplain of the King at the said fort.
In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the fifteenth of January, in Fort Duquesne at the Interment
Beautiful River, under the title of the Assumption of the Texier,
most Blessed Virgin, died Peter Texier, unmarried, an in- unmarried,
habitant of the parish of St. Anne in the Seigniory of ant of the
Gatineaux, in the government of Three Rivers, aged gt^^^nne
about twenty-seven years, after having received the holy Seigniory
sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unc- e^ux fn Sie
tion. His remains were interred in the cemetery of the government
of Three
same fort, and that by us. Recollect priest, the first- ^ chap- Rivers.
lain of the King at the said Fort Duquesne. In testi-
mony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R,,
Chaplain.
56
Register of
Sepulture
de
Francois
Trudel
garcon hab-
itant de la
paroisse de
St. Francois
de salle
ditte La
pointe aux
trembles de
Quebec.
L'an mille se])t cent cinquante cinq, le qiiatorzenie de
febvrier dans le fort Duquesne a la belle Riviere, sous le
litre de TAssoraption de la tres S*® Vierge est decede Fran-
cois Trudel garcon habitant de la paroisse de St. Francois
de salle ditte La pointe aux trembles de Quebec apres
avoir receu les S'^ sacremens de penitence, de viatique, et
d'extrem onction lequel estoit age d'envirou de vint cinq
ans son corps a este inhume dans le cimitiere du mesme
fort, et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous ptre
Recolet aumonier du Roy au dit fort en foy de quoy avous
sign 6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Bap. de
Marie
Jeane
Vermette
Anglaise
apparten-
ant a My
De (Jontre-
coeur.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le deuxiesme mars,
a este baptis^e avec les ceremonies ordinaires de nost^ mere
la S*^ Eglise Catholique Marie Jeanne Vermet agee de
dix neufs moys ou environ n6e en Nouvelleville Spean-
calluianci, fille de Jean Vermet fran§ois de nation, cy
devant habitant de nouvellville speancalluianci lequel a
este tu pare les Chaougnoris venant se joindre aux catho-
liques de ces contrees de Jeanes Voleenbork anglaisse de
nation, native de Nord Caroline ses pere et mere, le par-
rain a este Monsieur Pierre Claude de Contrecceur escuyer
Sieur de Beaudry capitaine dynfenterie commendant en
chef des forts Duquesne, de la presqu'ille et de la Riviere
aux boeufs. La maraine Marie Joseph Chainier femme du
Sieur Norment negotiant a la belle Riviere Lesquels out
signes conjointement avec nous pte Recolet aumonier du
Roy au susdit fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
de la tres S*® Vierge si la belle Riviere.
Contrecceur
Marie Joseph Chainier
NORMAND
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Fovt DuLQJxesTxe.
57
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the fourteenth of February, in Fort Duquesne at the
Beautiful River, under the title of the Assumption of the
most Blessed Virgin, died Francis Trudel, unmarried, an
inhabitant of the parish of St. Francis of Sales, called
Point aux Trembles, (in the Province) of Quebec, after
having received the holy sacraments of Penance, tlie Viat-
icum and Extreme Unction, who was aged about twenty-
live years. His remains were interred in the cemetery of
the same fort, and that witii the customary ceremonies, by
us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King
at the said fort. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of Francis
Trudel,
unmarried,
an inhabit-
ant of tlie
parish of
St. Francis
of Sales,
called
Point aux
Trembles,
of Quebec.
In th'^ year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the second of March, was baptized with the customary
ceremonies of our Holy Mother the Catholic Church,
Mary Jane Vermet, aged nineteen months, or thereabout,
born at Newville Speancalluianci,*® daughter of John
Vermet, a Frenchman, formerly an inhabitant of New-
ville Speancalluianci, who was killed by the Shawauees
while coming to join the Catholics of these parts ; (and)
of Jane Vollenbork (Bolingbroke?) an English woman ;
the father and mother being natives of North Carolina.
The god-father was Monsieur Peter Claude de Contrecoeur,
Esquire, Sieur de Beandray, Captain of Infantry, Com-
mander-in-Chief of the forts of Duquesne, Presqu' Isle,
and French creek; the god-mother was Mary Joseph
Chainier, wife of the Sieur Norraent, merchant (trader) at
the Beautiful River, who have signed conjointly with us,
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at
the abovementioned Fort Duquesne, under the title of
the Assumption of the most Blessed Vii'gin at the Beauti-
ful River. Contrecceur,
Mary Joseph Chainier,
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Baptism of
Mary Jane
Vermet,
English,
of the
household
of Mr. de
Contrecoeur
8
58
Register' of
Sepulture
de Michel
Boucher
habitant de
St. Nicolas
aupres de
Quebec.
L'an mille sept cent einquante ciuq le cinquieme de
May, est decede au fort Duqnesne sous letitre de I'Asomp-
tion de la S**' Vierge a la belle Riviere Michel Boucher
gar9on habitant de la paroisse de St. Nicolas auprfes de
Quebec apres avoir reyeu les S*^ Sacremens de penitence de
viatique et d'extiem ouctiou lequel estoit ag6 de vint aus
ou environ son corps a este inhume dans le cimitiere du
meme tort et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous
ptre Recolet soussigne aumonier du Roy au susdit fort en
foy de quoy avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P, R.
Aumonier.
Sepul. de
Pierre
simar gar-
con habit-
ant de la
paroisse de
la petite
Riviere au
bas de
Quebec.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le cinquiesme
de Julliet a este tue et a eu sa chevelure levee, le nome
Pierre Simard gar§on habitant de la paroisse de la petite
Riviere au bas de Quebec lequel estoit age de vint trois
ans ou environ (lequel a satisfait a son devoir paschal)
son corps a este inhume dans le cimitiere du fort Duquesne
sous le tistre de I'Assomption de la S*^ Vierge a la belle
Riviere et cela avec les ceremonies par nous preste Recolet
soussign6 aumonier du Roy au dit fort Duquesne en foy
de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Le mort
du nome
Limoge
garcon hab-
itant des
mille isles
paroisse de
St. Louis.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le neuf de Julliett a
este tue dans le combat donu6 contre les Anglois le mesme
jour le nomm6 Limoge gargon habitant des milles isles,
paroisse de St. Louis, lequel estoit age d'environ de vint
six ans et le corps duquel a este enterre sur le champ de
baptaille par M*" Le Borgne cadet a leguilliette, ainsi qu'il
nous I'a d6clar6 a nous ptre Recolet soussigne aumonier du
Hoy au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la
gte Yierge a la belle Riviere en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Fort DTLqTJLesrte.
59
Michael
Bouclier,
an inhabit-
ant of
St. Nicho-
his, near
Quebec.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, Interment
on the fifth of May, died at Fort Diiquesne, under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the
Beautiful River, Michael Boucher, unmarried, an inhabit-
ant of the parish of St. Nicholas, near Quebec, after hav-
ing received the holy sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum
and Extreme Unction, who was aged twenty-two years,
or thereabout. His body was interred in the cemetery of
the same fort, and that with the customary ceremonies, by
us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King
at the abovementioned fort. In testimony whereof we
have signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the fifth of July was killed and scalped (a man) named
Peter Simard, unmarried, an inhabitant of the parish of
Petit Riviere, below Quebec, who was aged twenty-three
years, or thereabout. (He had performed his Easter
duty.) His body was interred in the cemetery of Fort
Duquesne, under the title of the Assumption of the
Bles.sed Virgin at the Beautiful River, and that with the
customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect priest, the under-
signed chaplain of the King at the said fort. In testi-
mony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the ninth of July,^^ was killed in the battle fought
with the English the same day, (a man) named Limoge,
unmarried, an inhabitant of the Thousand Islands, parish
of St. Louis, who was aged twenty-six years, whose re-
mains were interred on the field of battle by Mr. Le
Borgne,^" cadet a L'Eguilliette, as he made known to us.
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at
Fort Duquesne, under the title of the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin, at the Beautiful River. In testimony where-
of we have signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Peter
Simard,
unmarried,
an inhabit-
ant of the
parish of
Petit
Riviere,
below
Quebec.
The death
of
(a man)
named
Limoge,
unmarried,
an inhabit-
ant of the
Thousand
Islands,
parish of
St. Louis.
60
Jtegtster of
Sepulture
de Jean
Baptiste
Talleon
garcon hab-
itant des
mille isles
paroisse de
St. Louis.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le neuf de julliet
est deced6 au fort Duquesne a la belle Riviere sous le
tistre de I'Assomption de la S** Vierge le nomm^ Jean
Baptiste Talion gar9on habitant des milles Isles paroisse
de St. Louis ayant est6 blese le mesme jour dans le combat
donne contre les Auglois, lequel a recue les S*^ sacremens
d'extrem onction et de penitence son corps a est§ inhum6
dans le cimitiere du mesme fort le dix du present et cela
avec les ceremonies ordiuaires par nous pre Recolet Au-
monier du Roy au susdit fort en foy de quoy avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Sepulture
de Mr.
Carqueville
Lieutenant
dans les
troupes du
detache-
ment de la
marine.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le neuf de Julliet a
este tu6 au combat donne contre les Anglois et le mesme
jour que dessus M^ Dericherville escuyer Sieur de Carque-
ville, Lieutenant dans les troupes du detachement de la
marine aprSs avoire est6 le mesme jour en confesse lequel
estoit ag6 d'environ de trente trois ans : son corps a est^ le
dixiesme du susdit mois inhnm6 dans le cimitiere du fort
Duquesne k la belle Riviere sous le titre de I'Assomption
de la S*® Vierge, et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires
par nous pre Recolet soussigne aumonier du Roy au susdit
fort en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Sepulture
de Mr.
Laperade
oflBcier dans
les troupes
de L'isle
Royale.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le dix de Julliet est
decede au fort duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la
gte Yierge M^ Jean Baptiste de La Perade escuyer Sieur
de Parieux enseigne dans les troupes de l'isle Royale ayant
este blesse le neuf du present mois dans le combat donn6
contre les Anglois apres avoire refeu les S*^ sacremens
de penitence et d'extrem onction son corps a est^ inhume
dans le cimitiere du mesme fort par nous ptre Recolet
soussign6 aumonier du Roy au susdit fort en foy de quoy
avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P. B.
Aumonier.
FOTt ^TZQTZeSThe,
61
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the ninth of July, died at Fort Duquesne, at the Beau-
tiful River, under the title of the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin, (a man) named John Baptist Talion, un-
married, an inhabitant of the Thousand Islands, parish of
St. Louis, having been wounded the same day in the
battle fought with the English. He received the sacra-
ments of Penance and Extreme Unction. His remains
were interred in the cemetery of the same fort the tenth of
the present (month), and that with the customary ceremonies,
by us. Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the
King at the abovementioned fort. In testimony whereof
we have signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the ninth of July, was killed in the battle fought with
the English, and the same day as above, Mr. Dericher-
ville. Esquire, Sieur de Carqueviilfe, Lieutenant in the
forces of the detachment of the marine, after having the
same day confessed, who was aged about thirty-three years.
His remains were interred on the twelfth of the before-
mentioned month, in the cemetery of Fort Duquesne, at
the Beautiful River, under the title of the Assumption of
the Blessed Virgin, and that with the customary ceremonies,
by us. Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the
King at the abovementioned fort. In testimony whereof
we have signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R., Chaplain.
In tlie year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the tenth of July, died at Fort Duquesne, under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the
Beautiful River, Mr. John Baptist La P6rade, Esquire,
Sieur de Parieux, Ensign in the troops of the Isle Royale,* '
having been wounded on ti)e ninth of the present month
in the battle fought with the English, after having received
the holy sacraments of Penance and Extreme Unction.
His remains were interred in the cemetery of the same fort,
by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the
King at the abovementioned fort. In testimony whereof we
have signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of John
Baptist
Talion,
inhabitant
of the
Thousand
Islands,
parish of
St. Louis.
Interment
of
Mr. Carque-
ville.
Lieutenant
in the
forces of
the detach-
ment of the
marine.
Interment
of
Mr. Lap^r-
ade,
officer in
the force of
the Isle
Royale.
62
Register of
Sepulture
de
Mi'De
Beaujeux
Command-
ant du fort
Duquesne.
L'an raille sept cinqiiante cinq le neuf de Julliet a est6
tu6 au combat donn6 centre les Anglois et le mesme jour
que dessus, M*' LeoNARD Daniel esciiyer, Sieurde Beau-
jeux capitaine d'infenterie commandant du fort Duquesne
et de L'arm^e, lequel estoit age d'environt de quarente
cinq ans ayant este en confesse et fait ses devotions les
mesrae jour, son corps a est6 inhume le douze du mesme
mois dans le cimitiere du fort Duquesne sous le titre de
I'Assomption de la S*® Vierge a la belle Riviere et cela
avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous pre Recolet sous-
signe aumonier du Roy au susdit fort en foy de quoy
avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le vint sept de Jul-
Sepulture liet a este inhum6 dans le cimetiere du fort Duquesne a la
Mr Sennon- belle Riviere, le corps de Charle, escuyer sieure de Sennon-
ville cadet
a leguil-
lette.
ville. Cadet a I'eguilliette : et cela avec les ceremonies
ordinaires par nous pre Recolet soussigne Aumonier du
Roy au susdit fort en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Sepulture
de
Jean Bap-
tiste Dupuis
garcon
habitant
de
Laprairie
ae la
Magde-
leine.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le vint neuf de Julliet
est deced^ au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
de la S'^ Vierge a la belle Riviere, Jean Baptiste Dupuis
gar9on habitant de la prairie de La Magdeleine ayant este
blesse le neuf du susdit mois dans le combat donne contra
les Anglois lequel a re§eu les S*^ Sacremens de penitence
le viatique et I'extrem onction, son corps a este inhum6
dans le cimitiere du mesme fort et cela avec les ceremonies
ordinaires par nous pre Recolet soussigne aumonier du
Roy au dit fort en foy de quoy avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt DzLqixesTze.
63
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the ninth of July, was killed in the battle fought with
the English, and the same day as above, Mr. Li^nard
Daniel, Esquire, Sieur de Beaujeu,^^ Captain of Infant-
ry, Commander of Fort Duquesne and of the army, who
was aged about forty-five years, having been at confes-
sion and performed his devotions^ ^ the same day. His
remains were interred on the twelfth of the same month,
in the cemetery of Fort Duquesne under the title of the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful River,
and that with the customary ceremonies by us, Recollect
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at the above-
mentioned fort. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the twenty-seventh of July, was interred in the ceme-
tery of Fort Duquesne, at the Beautiful River, the remains
of Charles, Esquire, Sieur de Sonnonvi lie, cadet L'Eguil-
lette, and that with the customary ceremonies by us. Recol-
lect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at the
abovementioned fort. In testimony whereof we have
signed : Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the twenty-ninth of July, died at Fort Duquesne, under
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the
Beautiful River, John Baptist Dupuis, unmarried, an in-
habitant of the i)rairie of the Magdelene, having been
wounded on the ninth of the abovementioned month in the
battle fought with the English, having received the sacra-
ments of penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction.
His remains were interred in the cemetery of the same fort,
and that with the customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the said fort. In tes-
timony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of
Mr. De
Beauj eu ,
Commander
of Fort
Duquesne.
Interment
of
Mr. Son-
nonville,
cadet
L'Eguil-
lette.
Interment
of John
Baptist
Dupris,
unmarried,
an inhabi-
tant of the
Prairie of
the Magde-
lene.
64
JRegister of
Sepulture
de
M"" Joseph
Hartel
cadet dans
les
troupes.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le trente de JuUiet
est deced^ au fort Duqiiesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
de la S'* Vierge a la belle Riviere M"" Joseph Hartel
escuyer sieur de S'® Theresse cadet dans les troupes de la
marine age de vint deux ans ou environ apres avoir re9eu
les sacremens de penitence, viatiqueet d'extrem onction son
corps a est6 inhura§ dans le cimitiere du susdit fort par
nous preste Recolet soussign^ aumonier du Roy aux forts
de la presqu'ille et de La riviere aux boeufs et cela avec les
ceremonies ordinaires et lagrement du pere Denys Baron
Aumonier du Roy au susdit fort Duquesne lequel a sign6
avec nous
f. Luc Collet P. R.
aumonier de la presqu'ile et Riviere aux boeufs.
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier du fort Duquesne.
Bap. (le
Jean Daniel
Norment.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le dix huit de Septem-
bre a est6 baptise avec les ceremonies ordinaires de Nostre
Mere la Ste Eglise Jean Daniel Norment n6 du mesmejour
fils de Jean Gaspar Norment et de Marie Joseph Chanier
ses pere et mere en legitime marriage le purain a est6 Mon-
sieur John Daniel escuyer sieur Dumas capitaine dynfen-
terie commendant enchef des forts de la presquille, de la
riviere aux boeufs et de celuy de Duquesne a la belle riviere
la maraine a est^e th^rfese norment Laquelle a declar6 ue
savoir signer, le parain seul a sign^ avec nous.
Dumas.
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt ^)jzqTzesTLe.
65
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the thirtieth of July, died at Fort Duquesne, under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beau-
tiful River, Mr. Joseph Hartel, Esquire, Sieur de St. Tere-
sa, a cadet in the forces of the marine, aged twenty-two
years, or thereabout, after having received the sacraments
of Penance, the Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His re-
mains were interred in the cemetery of the abovementioned
fort, by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the
King at the forts of Presqu'Isle and French creek, and
that with the customary ceremonies and with the consent
of Father Denys Baron, chaplain of the King at the above-
mentioned Fort Duquesne, who has signed with us.
Fr. Luke Collet, P. R., ^^
Chaplain of Presqu'Isle and French creek.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain of Fort Duquesne.
Interment
of Joseph
Hartel,
cadet in
the forces.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five,
on the eighteenth of September was baptized with the cus-
tomary ceremonies of our Holy Mother the Catholic
Church, John Daniel Norment,^^ born the same day, the
son of John Gasper Norment and of Mary Joseph
Chainier, his father and mother being united in lawful
wedlock. His god-father was Monsieur John Daniel, Es-
quire, Sieur Dumas, Captain of Infantry, Commander-in-
Chief of the forts of Presqu'Isle, French creek, and Du-
quesne at the Beautiful River, his god-mother was Teresa
Norment, who saying that she could not sign her name
the god-father alone signed with us.
Dumas.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Baptism
of John
Paniel
Norment.
66 JEtegtsteT of
Sepulture L'an mille sept cent cinquante cinq le vint quatre sep-
jean tembre est decede au fort Diiquesne sous le titre de I'As-
N^rmeit ^^'^P^^^^n de la S'« Vierge, a la belle Riviere Jean Daniel
norment fils de Gaspar Norment et de Marie Joseph Chai-
nier, son corps a est6 inhume dans le cimitiere du mesme
fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par nous preste
Reoolet soussign6 Aumonier du Roy an dit fort en foy de
quoy nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baeon p. R.
Aumonier.
Fort ^ixqixesTze.
6t
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, Interment
on the twenty-fourth of September, died at Fort Duquesne, Daniel
under the title of tiie Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at Norment.
the Beautiful River, John Daniel Norment, the son of Gas-
per Norm en t and of Mary Joseph Chainier. His remains
were interred in the cemetery of the same fort, and that
with the customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect priest, the
undersigned chaplain of the King at the said fort. In
testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
68
Jtegister of
|E present Registre contenant huit feuliets blaiics non compris le
present a est^ cott6 et ])araph6 par nous capitaine d'ynfenterie
commendant en chef du fort Duquesne et ses dependances
leqiiel servira a enregister les baptemes, mariages et sepultures qui se
seront au dit fort Duquesne h la belle Riviere sous le titre de I'As-
somption de la tres S*® Vierge et cela pendant la preseute ann^e mille
sept cent cinquante six Lequel Registre a est6 remis au p^re Denys
Baron, pte Recolet aumonier du Roy au fort Duquesne fait au dit fort
le vint deux Avril mille sept cent cinquante six.
Dumas.
Sepulture
de
Therese
Norment.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint d'avril est de-
ced6 au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomptiou de la
gte Vierge Therese Norment, ag6e de quatorize ans, apr^s
avoir receu les S'* Sacretoens de penitence de viatique et
d'extreni onction son corps a este inhum6 dans le Cimiti6re
du susdit fort et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires par
nous ptre Recollet aumonier du Roy au dit fort Duquesne
en foy de quoy avons sign4.
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
Sepulture
de Coroco
sau vage
Outahais
de
Michel
Makina.
L'an mille sept cinquante six le vint sept d'avril est de-
ced6 au fort Duquesne le nomm4 Coroco Sauvage Outaliais
de la mission de Michelmakina le corps duquel a ete in-
hume dans le cimiti^re du mesme fort et cela avec les cere-
monies ordinaires par nous preste Recolet soussigne aumo-
nier du Roy au dit fort Duquesne en foy de quoy, nous
avons signe.
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
FoTt DnqTzesThe.
69
'«7|^HE present register, containing eight blank leaves, not in-
wAV| eluding this one, has been arranged and signed by us, Cap-
'<S^3k tain of Infantry, Commander-in Chief of Fort Duquesne and
its dependencies, which will serve for the registration of the bap-
tisms, marriages and interments, which will take place at the said
Fort Duquesne at the Beautiful River, under the title of the As-
sumption of the Most Blessed Virgin, and that during the present
year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, which register has
been entrusted to Father Denys Baron, Recollect priest, the chaplain
of the King at Fort Duquesne. Made at the said fort the twenty-
second of April, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six.
Dumas.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Interment
on the twentieth of April, died at Fort Duquesne, under NoJment
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the
Beautiful River, Teresa Norment, aged fourteen years,
after having received the holy sacraments of Penance, the
Viaticum and Extreme Unction. Her body was interred
in the cemetery of the abovementioned fort, and that with
the customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect priest, chaplain
of the King at the said Fort Duquesne. In testimony
whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-seventh of April, died at Fort Duquesne,
an Ottawa Indian named Coroco, from the mission of
Michilmackinac,'' whose remains were interred in the
cemetery of the same fort, and that with the customary cere-
monies, by us. Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain
of the King at Fort Duquesne. In testimony whereof
we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of Coroco,
an Ottawa
Indian of
Michili-
mackinac
70
Jtegtster of
^pt. de L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le quinze de May a
Candon este baptisee par nous pretre Kecolet soussigne aurnonier du
irlandoife j^Qy mj fy^.j^ Duquesiie sous le titre de I'Assomptioii de la
nee
Chaouoi-
nons.
parmi les S'® Vierge a la belle Riviere et cela avec les ceremonies de
la S *®Eglise helaine Candon ag6e de deux mois, fille de
Jean Candon et de fara Clioisy, ses pere et mere en legitime
mariage tous deux irlandois de nation et catholiques de
Religion, lesquels ont et6 pris par les Chaouoinons en venant
ici se joindre aux catholiques le parain a este Monsieur jean
bap Gerault garde des magazins du Roy au susdit fort Du-
quesne la maraine Marie Joseph chainier femme du sieur
Norment negotiant l\ la belle Riviere ; lesquels ont signe
conjoin tement avec nous ainsi que le pere de I'enfant.
Marie Joseph mar Cheni6 Norm at.
Garaud Johanes Condon.
f'r. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Bap. de
Denise
Louise
Angloife
de f^ation.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint huit may est^
baptist par nous preste Recolet soussigne Aumonier du
Roy au fort Duquesue sous le titre de I'Assomption de
la S*® Vierge a la belle Riviere, et cela avec les cere-
monies ordinaires de la S'® Eglise Catholique Denise Louise
Angloise de nation age de trois jours, la mere ayaut ete
prise par les sauvages Loups et eusuite doune a M"" Dumas
commendant du fort Duquesne, le parain este Monsieur
Joachaim de la Noiie escuyer Sieur de Robusel enseigne
en pied dans les troupes du detachement de la Marine la
maraine felicite S*® Marie le parain seul a signe avec nous la
maraine ne le sachant.
Lanoue.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Baptism of
on the fifteenth of May, was baptized by us. Recollect ^"on, of"'
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort Du- I"^^'
quesne, under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed born^among
Virgin at the Beautiful River, and that with the cere- ^, *''^
f^ , XT 1 x-^,l 1 T-i,, bnawanees.
monies of the Holy Church, Ellen Candon, aged two
months, the daughter of John Candon and of Sarah
Choisy, the father and mother being united in lawful wed-
lock, both being Irish ^f' Catholics, who were captured by
the Shawanees in coming here to join the Catholics. The
god-father was Monsieur John Baptist Garault, keeper of
the magazines of the King in the abovementioned Fort
Duquesne ; the god-mother, Mary Joseph Chanier, wife of
the Sieur Norment, merchant at the Beautiful River, who
signed conjointly with us as also the father of the infant.
Mary Joseph Chanier Norment.
Garaud. John Candon.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-eighth of May, was baptized by us, Recol- Baptism of
lect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort I^^^ise
Duquesne, under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed of EngHsh
Virgin at the Beautiful River, and that with the custo- P^''«"t^g^-
mary ceremonies of the Holy Catholic Church, Denise
Louisa, of English parentage, aged three days. The
mother having been taken by the Loup (Mohegan) Indians,
and afterwards given up to M. Dumas commander of Fort
Duquesne. Her god-father was Monsieur Joachim de la
None, Esquire, Sieur de Robusel, ensign of foot in the
troops of the detachment of the marine; the god-mother
Felicitas St. Mary. The god-father alone signed with us,
the god-mother not knowing how.
La Noue.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.
Chaplain.
72 Regtster of
vSepulture L'aii mille sept cent ciuquante six le trois de Juin est
Jean b. decede dans le fort Duquesne, sous le titre de I'Assomption
Masion. (jg j^ §'« Vierge a la belle Riviere Jean b. Masion garden
habitant dans la paroisse de I'Assomption, ag6 de vint trois
ans on environ apres avoir receu les S'^ Sacreniens de pen-
itence, d'Eucaristie et d'extrein onction et son corps a este
inhume par nous pre Recolet soussigne Aumonier du Roy
au dit fort en foy de quoy nous avons signe.
fr. Denys Baron, P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint Juin est de-
Sepulture cede dans le fort duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de
andrt page, la S'" Vierge a la belle Riviere Alexandre Page, de la
paroisse de Cap Sant6 : lequel estroit age de vint deux ans
ou environs, apres avoir receu les S*^ Sacremens de peni-
tence, de viatique et d'extrem onction sou corps a este in-
hume dans le cimitiere du susdit fort et cela avec les cere-
monies ordinaires par nous preste Recolet soussigne aumo-
nier du Roy au dit fort Duquesne, en foy de quoy nous
avons signe.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
G
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint huit de Juin
Sepulture gg(- decede au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
.Toseph de la S"' Vierge a la belle Riviere Joseph Durocher,
Durocher. j^aJtrg charpentier pour le Roy en ce poste, natif de la pa-
roisse de la Magdeleine en Canada lequel estroit age de vint
six ans ou environs apres avoir reyeu les sacremens de peni-
tence, de viatique et d'extrem onction son corps a este in-
Iiume dans le Cimitiere du mesme fort et cela avec les cere-
monies ordinaires par nous pte Recolet soussigne aumonier
du Roy au dit Fort Duquesne en foy de quoy nous avons
signe.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier,
Fort ^TLqxLesThe.
73
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the third of June, died in Fort Duquesne, under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beau-
tiful River, John B. Masion, unmarried, an inhabitant of
the parish of the Assumption, aged twenty-three years, or
thereabout, after having received the holy sacraments of
Penance, the Eucharist, and Extreme Unction. His re-
mains were interred by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned
chaplain of the King at the said fort. In testimony where-
of we have signed : tt. t-w -d t^ t^
^ Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twentieth of June, died in Fort Duquesne under the
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beau-
tiful River, Alexander Page, of the parish of Cape Sante ;
who was aged twenty-two years, or thereabout, after having
received the holy sacraments of Penance, the Viaticum and
Extreme Unction. His remains were interred in the
cemetery of the abovementioned fort, and that with the
customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect priest, the under-
signed chaplain of the King at the said Fort Duquesne.
In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-eighth of June, died at Fort Duquesne,
under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at
the Beautiful River, Joseph Durocher, master carpenter of
the King at this post, a native of the parish of the Magde-
lene in Canada, who was aged twenty-six years, or there-
about, after having received the sacraments of Penance, the
Viaticum and Extreme Unction. His remains were in-
terred in the cemetery of the same fort, and that with the
customary ceremonies by us. Recollect priest, the under-
signed chaplain of the King at the said Fort Duquesne.
In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
10
Interment
of John
B. Masion.
Interment
of Alexan-
der Page.
Interment
of Joseph
Durocher.
74
JEtegtsteT of
Bap. de
Marie
Louise
Flarcey
irlandoise.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le neuf Jiilliet a est6
baptise par nous preste Reeolet sous sign^aumonier du Roy
au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la S'®
Vierge S. la belle Riviere et cela avec les ceremonies de la
S*® Eglise Catholique Marie Louise ag6e de six semaines
ou environ fille de Patrice flarcey et de francoise Langford
prise par les sauvages Chaougnon ses pere et mere en legit-
ime manage contracte en pelsavenie en presence d'un preste
Catholique, les dits pere et mere estaut irlandois de nation
et Catholique de Religion le parain a este Louis De Quin-
dre escuyer sieur d'ouville la maraine felicite S**^ Marie qui
ont signe avec nous.
Louis de quindre douville.
FELICITE Joseph Ste. Marie.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le neuf d'aout a
Bap. de est6 baptisee par nous pre Reeolet sous signe aumonier du
arie j^^y ^^ ^yj,^. j)iiqi,esne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la
Ste. Marie. S*® Vierge a la belle Riviere et cela avec les ceremonies
ordinaires Marie Louisse nee du mesme jour fille de Joseph
Ste Marie et de Louisse piedalu ses pere et mere en legitime
mariage, le parain a est6 le sieur fran^ois forgue chirurgien
en ce poste La maraine felicite Ste. Marie lesquels ont
sign6 avec nous les mesmes jour et an que dessus en foy de
quoy avons sign6.
F. FORGUE.
fellicite Ste. Marie.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le dix daout je
Bapt.de preste Reeolet aumonier du Roy au fort Duquesne et
Smith sous le titre de I'Assomption de la Ste. Vierge a la
Angloisede ^^ellc Rivierc certifie avoir suppleer le mesme jour que
Nation. , • i i /^ i • t i •>
dessus les ceremonies du baptesme a Catherine Laquel j ay
Fort Dviqizesne.
75
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Baptism of
on the ninth of July, was baptized by us, Recollect priest, Louisa
the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort Duquesne, ^^ j^j.^J]j
under the title of the Assum[)tion of the Blessed Virgin at parentage,
the Beautiful River, and that with the ceremonies of the
Holy Catholic Church, Mary Louisa, aged six weeks, or
thereabout, the daughter of Patrick Flarcy and Frances
Langford, taken by the Shawanees Indians, her father and
mother being united in lawful wedlock, contracted in
Pennsylvania" '^ in presence of a Catholic priest, the said
father and mother being Irish Catholics. The god-father
was Louis de Quindre, Esquire, Sieur D'Ouville,''" the
god-mother Felicitas St, Mary, who signed with us.
Louis de Quindre D' Ouville.
Felicitas Joseph St. Mary.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain,
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the ninth of August, was baptized by us. Recollect Baptism of
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort Du- Louisa
quesne, under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed
Virgin at the Beautiful River, and that with the custom-
ary ceremonies, Mary Louisa, born the same day, the
daughter of Joseph St. Mary and of Louisa Piedalu, her
father and mother being united in lawful wedlock. The
god-father was the Sieur Francis Forgue, the surgeon at
this post ; the god-mother Felicitas St. Mary, who signed
with us the same day and year as above. In testimony
whereof we have signed :^ ^ -p Pqrgue
Felicitas St. Mary.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
St. Mary.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Baptism of
on the tenth of August, I, Recollect priest, the chaplain of ^"^^^^""^
the King at Fort Duquesne, and under the title of the As- English
sumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful River, parentage.
"76 Jtegzster of
baptisee estant dangereusement malade fille de Guiaulme
Smith et de Cecile Bangarnoz ses pere et mere, le parain a
est6 Jean hainguain irlandois de nation et catholique de
Religion, La maraine Barbe Conorade allemande de nation
et Catholique de Religion : lesquels ont declare ne scavoir
signe en foy de quoy j'ai sigu6
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Nation.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le dix d'Aout a est^
Bapteme de baptis6e par nous pre Recolet'sous signe aumonier du Roy
g r j^ au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption de la S*®
Angloise de Vierge barbe ag§e de deux ans fille de Guiaulme Smith et
de Cecile Bangarnoz ses pere et mfere, le parain a este Jean
Candon irlandois de nation et Catholique de religion, La
maraine Barbe Conorade alemande ne nation et Catholiq
de religion le parain seul a sign6 avec nous.
Jan Candon
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an raille sept cent cinquante six le quatorze d'Aout
Sepulture est deced6 au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomption
C th ■ *^^ '^ ^'^ Vierge a la belle Riviere Catherine Smith angloise
Smith de nation ag6e de dix huit mois ayant este baptisee le douze
An^rloise de j ^ , ^^ • i ^ j i • -i.-^ i
nation "" present son corps a este inhume dans Je cimitiere du
meme fort par nous pte Recolet soussign^ aumonier du
Roy au dit fort et cela avec ceremonies ordinaires en foy
de quoy nous avons sign6
Fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
Fort Dixqixesixe.
certify tliat I supplied, the same day as above, the cere-
monies of the baptism of Catharine whom I had bap-
tized during a dangerous sickness, the daughter of William
Smith and Cecilia Bangarnoz, her father and mother.
The god-father was John Hannigan,^^ an Irishman and a
Catholic ; the god-mother Barbara Conrad, a German and
a Catholic, who declared they could not sign. In testi-
mony whereof I have signed :'*^
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
t7
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the tenth of August, was baptized by us, Recollect Baptism of
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort Du- ^^^^^^'^ e
quesne, under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed English**
Virgin, Barbara, aged two years, the daughter of William P^^'^^^'^g^-
Smith and Cecilia Bangarnoz, her father and mother. The
god-father was John Candon, an Irishman and a Catholic;
the godmother Barbara Conrad, a German and aCatholic.
The god-father alone signed with us.
John Candon.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the fourteenth of August, died at Fort Duquesne, under interment
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the 9^ Cathar-
Beautiful River, Catharine Smith, of English parentage, of English
aged eighteen months^ having been baptized the twelfth of Parentage,
the present (month). Her remains were interred in the
cemetery of the same fort, by us. Recollect priest, the un-
dersigned chaplain of the King at the said fort, and that
with the customary ceremonies. In testimony whereof we
have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
18
Jtegister of
Bapt. de L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le dix huit d'Aout a
Turner este baptise avec les ceremonies ordiuaires par nous pte
^^Ition."^^ Eecolet sous signe aumonier du Roy an fort Duquesne
sous ]e titre de TAssomption de la S'« Vierge Jean anglois
de nation age de deux ans et demie fils de Jean Turner,
Anglois de nation et de Marie Neuuton Angloise de nation
Le pere et mere en legitime mariage, le parain a este Jean
hanguain irlandois de nation et Catholique de Religion,
la maraine Sara foisse iriandoise de nation et Catholique
de Religion lesquels ont declare ue savoir signe en foy de
quoy nous avons signe
Fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint d'Aont a este
Sepulture iidiume dans le cimitiere du fort Duquesne sous le titre de
^'"" l'Assomi)tion de la S*" Vierge a la Belle Riviere le corps
sauvage ^ ^ '^ , _ ^
huron de la d un Sauvage huron de la mission du detroit et cela avec
™detroit ^^^ ceremonies ordinaires lequel huron estoit ag6 de dix
huit ans environ en foy de quoy nous avons signe nous
pte Recollet Aumonier du Roy an fort Duquesne
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le sixiesme de Septem-
Sepulture j^j.g g> ^gj.^ noye dans le belle Riviere le nomme Jean bap-
Jean Bap- tiste Matthe de la paroisse du Cap Sante ditte la S*®
^^'^de la^^ ^ famille lequel estoit age de vint ans ou environ son corps
paroisse du a est6 inhume dans le cimitiere du fort Duquesne sous le
Sante'^^ditte titre de I'Assomption de la S'® Vierge a la belle Riviere,
la Ste gj- (.gia avec les ceremonies ordinaires i>ar nous ptre Recolet
famille. , . . , t^ i-i /> , -ta
sous signe Aumonier du Koy au susdit lort Duquesne en
foy de quoy nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
FoT^t ^zLQuesThe,
79
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Baptism of
on tlie eighteenth of August, was baptized with the cus- Turner of
English
parentage.
tomary ceremonies by us, Recollect priest, the undei-signed
chaplain of the King at Fort Duquesne, under tine title of
the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, John,''^ of English
parentage, aged two and a half years, son of John Turner,
an Englishman, and Mary Neuuton (Newton ?), an Eng-
lishwoman, the father and mother being united in lawful
wedlock. The god-father was John Hannigan, an Irish-
man and a Catholic, the god-mother Sarah Foissy, an Irish-
woman and a Catholic, who declared they could not sign.
In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R,.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-eighth of August, was interred in the cem- Interment
etery of Fort Duquesne, under the title of the A8sumj)tion Mission of'
of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful River, the remains I>etroit.
of a Huron Indian of the mission of Detroit,*^ and that
with the customary ceremonies; which Huron was aged
about eighteen years. In testimony whereof we have
signed, we. Recollect priest, chaplain of the King at Fort
Duquesne.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the sixth of September, was (h'owned in the Beauti-
ful River (a man) named John Baptist Mattlie, of the par-
ish of Cape Sante, called the Holy Family, who was aged
twenty years, or thereabout. His remains were interred in
the cemetery of Fort Duquesne, under the title of the As-
sumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful River,
and that with the customary ceremonies, by us, Recollect
priest, the undersigned chaplain of the abovementioned
Fort Duquesne. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Interment
of John
Baptist
Matthe, of
the parish
Cape Sante,
called the
Holy
Family.
80
Register of
Sepulture L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le cinqui^me de Decern-
Thomas i)re est decede au fort Duquesne sous le titre de I'Assomp-
jiroux de la tion de la S*« Vierge a la belle Riviere le nomme Thomas
paroisse de .. , °
St. Thomas, jiroux age de vint et un an on environ apres avoir receu
les saints sacremens de penitence et dextrein onction sou
corps a este inhume dans le ciniitiere des picostes et cela
avec les ceremonies ordinaires par dous ptre Recolet sous
signe Aumonier du Roy au susdit fort duquesne en foy de
quoy nous avons signe
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le dix sept decembre
Bap. du a este baptisee avec les ceremonies ordinaires de la S'®
Christi- Eglise Romaine nostre Mere Jean baptiste Chistiguay grand
guay grand chef Iroquois age de quatre vint quinze ans ou environ
quois. lequel estant dangereusement malade a demande ardament
le St. baptesme lequel luy a este administre le mesme jour
que dessus par nous pre Recolet sous signe Aumonier du
Roy au fort Duquesne le parain a este le Sieur Chavau-
dray interpret des Iroquois lequel a signe avec nous
Jh. Chavaudraye.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Bap. de
Louis A.n-
glois de
nation
duquel on
ignore le
noni
du pere
et de la
mere.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le vint cinq Decembre
a este baptise sous condition par nous pre Recolet sous sign6
aumonier du Roy au fort duquesne sous le titre de I'As-
somption de la S*® Vierge a la belle Riviere Louis An-
glois de nation age de dix huit mois ou environ, duquel ou
ignore le nom du pere et de sa mere lequel est en la puis-
sance des Sauvages Loups, et qui estant dangereusement
malade je sous sign6 pte Recolet sous signe aumonier du
Roy au su.sdit fort certifie luy avoir administre le Sacrement
de baptesme et cela avec les ceremonies ordinaires de
notre mere de S*^ Eglise, le parain a e.st4 Monsieur Mutigny
FoTt ^TzqiLesTxe.
81
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, Interment
on the fifth of December, died at Fort Duquesne, under the jiroux, ot
title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at theBeauti- the parish
ful River, (a man) named Thomas Jiroux, aged twenty-one Thomas,
years, or thereabout, after having received the holy sacra-
ments of Penance, and Extreme Unction. His remains
were interred in the smallpox'''^ cemetery, and that with
the customary ceremonies, by us. Recollect priest, the un-
dersigned chaplain of the King, at the abovementioned
Fort Duquesne. In testimony whereof we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the seventeenth of December, was baptized with the cus- Baptism of
toraary ceremonies of our Holy Mother the Roman ch^S^
Catholic Church, John Baptist Christiguay,''® Great Chief guay,
Great Chief
(of the) Iroquois, aged ninety-five years, or thereabout, who
being dangerously sick, earnestly desired Holy Baptism,
which was administered the same day as above, by us,
Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of the King
at Fort Duquesne. The god-father was the Sieur Chav-
audray, interpreter of the Iroquois, who signed with us.
Jh. Chavaudraye.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain." 3
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six
on the twenty-fifth of December, was baptized condition-
ally, by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of
the King at Fort Duquesne, under the title of the Assump-
tion of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful River, Louis,
of English parentage, aged eighteen months, or thereabout,
the name of whose father and mother was unknown, whose
father is a prisoner among the Loup (Mohegan) Indians,
and who being dangerously sick, I, Recollect priest, the
undersigned chaplain of the King at the abovementioned
fort, certify to have administered to him the sacrament of
Baptism, and that with the customary ceremonies of our
11
of the
Iroquois,
Baptism of
Lonis, of
English
parentage,
the name
of whose
father and
mother is
unknown.
82
^egzstev of
escuyer sieur de Variant enseigne en pied dans les
troupes dn detachement de la marine la maraine Marie
Joseph salde femme du sieur Roquette sergent dans les
troupes lesquels parain et maraine ont signe avec nous
Marie Josete Sade.
MUTIG.NY DE VaSSORY.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
quelle on
ignore.
L'an niille sept cent cinquante six le vint cinq decembre
Bap. de g, este baptise sous condition par nous pre Recolet, sous
fran^oise . -i-r. i- t^ i>t
Angloise de signe aumonier du Roy an tort Duquesne sous le titre de
jSaiion le I'Assomption (le la S*® Vierge francoise angloise de nation
nom du '^ °_ ° _
pereetde la agee de quinze mois ou environ de laquelle on ignore le
mere de la- iv.jiv • l l i • j
noni du pere et de la inere qui estant en Ja puissance des
sauvages Loups et endanger de mort je sous signe aumonier
du Roy au susdit fort Duquesne certifie luy avoir administr^
le sacrement de Baptesme et cela avec les ceremonies ordi-
naires le parain a este le Sieur Charles fleure d'epe, La
maraine francoise Langfort irlandoise de nation et catho-
lique de Religion, lesquels ont signe avec nous
FRANCOISE LANFORD.
Ignace Charlie fleur d'epe.
fr. Denys Baron P. R.,
Aumonier.
Bapt. de
fran(,'ois
Marie
Anglois
de
Nation,
dont on
ignore le
nom du
pere et de
la mere.
L'an mille .sept cent cinquante six le vint sept decembre
a este baptise sous condition et avec les ceremonies ordi-
naires, franyois Marie, anglois de nation age de trois ou en-
viron dont on ignore le nom du pere et de la mere qui est
en la puissance de Monsieur de Lignery, commandant du
fort Duquesne le parain a este Monsieur Loui.s, Escuyer,
Sieur Dubui.sson lieutenant dans les troupes du detache-
FoTt DiLqixesThe-. «3
Holy Mother the Church. The god-father was Monsieur
Mutigny, Esquire, Sieur de Variant, ensign in the infantry
of the detachment of the marine ; the god-mother Mary
Joseph Salde, wife of ^ieur Roquette, Sergeant in the
forces, whose god-father and god-mother signed with us.
Mary Joseph SALDe.
MUTIGNY DE VaSSORY.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-fifth of December, was bai)tized condition- Baptism of
ally, by us, Recollect priest, the undersigned chaplain of English
the King at Fort Dunuesne, under the title of the As- Parentage,
sumption of the Blessed Virgin, Frances, of English of Avhose
parentage, aged fifteen months, or thereabout, the name of ^^^^^f ^' '^'?*i
^ ° ' ® _ ' ' mother is
whose father and mother is unknown, who being prisoners unknown,
among the Louj) (Mohegan) Indians and in danger of
death, I, the undersigned chaplain of the King at Fort
Duquesne, certify to have administered to her the sacra-
ment of Baptism, and that with the customary ceremonies.
The god-father was Charles Fleur d' Epe, the god-mother
Frances Langford, an Irishwoman and a Catholic, who
have signed with us.
Frances Langford.
Ignatius Charles Fleur D' Epe.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the twenty-seventh ot December, was baptized condi- Baptism of
tionally and with the customary ceremonies, Frances Mary, Mary, of
of English parentage, aged three,^<> or thereabout, the *^"g^is^
name of whose father and mother is unknown, and who is the name
in the custody of Monsieur de Lignery, commander of fethlr and
Fort Duquesne. The god-father was Monsieur Louis mother is
Esquire, Sieur Dubuisson, lieutenant in the forces of the ""^''"^"-
84
Itegtster of
raeut de la marine, la maraine Suzanne Magdeleine Man-
seau lesquels ont sigue avec nous
dubuisson.
Sezane Madelene Masso.
Fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Bap. de
Denys
Sauvage
Outaouais.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le deux d'octobre a
est6 baptise Denys sauvage Outaouois age de douze ans ou
environ lequel estant daugereusement malade a deniande
le St. Baptesme que nous nous pre Recolet sous signe avons
administr4 ainsi nous avons sign6
fr. Denys Baron p. R.
Aumonier.
L'an mille sept cent cinquante six le dix octobre est de-
Sepulture ced6 aupres du fort Duquesne Denys sauvage Outaouois
*^Sauvage8 ag6 de douze ans ou environ ayant est6 baptist le deux du
Outaouais. present mois son corps a este inhum6 dans le ciniitiere du
susdit fort duquesne et cela pour nous pre Recolet sous
sign6 aumonier du Roy au dit fort ainsi nous avons signe
Fr. Denys Baron P. R.
Aumonier.
Fort DuLqiJLesrte.
85
detachment of the marine, the god- mother Susan Magde-
lene Manseau, who liave signed with us.
dubuisson.
Susan Magdelene Manseau.
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six,
on the second of October, was baptized, Denvs, an Ottawa Baptism of
T 1. 1 1 1 1 , 1 I • 1 Denys, an
Indian, aged twelve years, or thereabout, who being dan-
gerously sick, desired Holy Baptism, which we, Recollect
priest, the undersigned, have administered to him. Thus
we have signed v' '
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
Ottawa
Indian.
In the year one thousand seven hundred and fift3^-six,
on the tenth of October, died in Fort Duquesne, Denys, Interment
' I 1 •' ^' Dennis
an Ottawa Indian, aged twelve years, or thereabout, having an Ottawa
been baptized on the second of the present month. His Indian,
remains were interred in the cemetery of the abovemention-
ed Fort Duquesne, and that by us. Recollect priest, the un-
dersigned chaplain of the King, at the said fort. Thus
we have signed :
Fr. Denys Baron, P. R.,
Chaplain.
86
CerttJlccLte.
©criipcat.
>OUS sous signe Protonotaire de la C<)ur Sup6rieure pour le
Bas Canada, dans le district de Montreal, certifions que les
cinquante sept Estraits ci dessus, et des autres parts ecrets,
sent en tout conformes aux originaux qui se trouvent dans les Registres
des Actes deBaptemes, Mariages et Sepultures fails au Fort Duquesne
pendant les annees mil sept cent cinquante trois, mil sept cent cin-
quante quatre, rail sept cent cinquante cinq et mil sept cent cin-
quante six; les dits Registres deposes dans les archives de la dite
Cour, dont nous sommes depositaires.
Montreal le dixieme jour de Mars mil huit cent cinquante huit.
Monk Coffin & Papineau,
[l. s.] p. S. C.
Ce-pttficcLte.
87
©erttjrccttc.
52
)E, tlie undersigned notaries of the Supreme Court of Lower
^^ Canada for the District of Montreal, certify that the fifty-
^'^Jl^<^B seven extracts written above, and in other places, are in per-
fect conformity with the originals which are to be found in the Regis-
ters of the Acts of Baptisms, Marriages and Interments made at Fort
Duquesne during the years one thousand seven hundred and fifty-
three, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-four, one thousand seven
hundred and fifty-five and one thousand seven lumdred and fifty-six.
The said Registers are preserved in tlie archives of the said Court
whereof we are the custodians.
Montreal, the 10th of March, one thousand eight liundred and fifty-
eight.
[L. S.]
Monk, Coffin & Papineau.
S. P. C.
88 JSTotes.
NOTES.
1. Although the Register professes to be of Fort Duquesne only, it contains a
number of entries, in the beginning, from the other posts occupied by the French
in the northwestern part of Pennsylvania, before they took possession of the spot
upon which Fort Duquesne stood.
2. This series of Mr. Shea's publications takes its name from the celebrated
French printer, Sebastian Cramoisy, who, born in 1585, became, in 1640, the first
director of the royal printing office of the Louvre. The Cramoisy edition of Mr.
Shea comprises twenty-four volumes, issued between the years 1857 and 1868. John
Gilmary Shea was born in New York city, July 22, 1824. The greater part of his
life has been devoted to literary pursuits, and more especially to American Catholic
history, in the knowledge of which he has no equal, and probably never will have.
His collection of works bearing on that subject is very large, including many books
and pamphlets, the existence of which is not known to the ordinary student of our
history. His home is in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
3. This preface forms no part of the Register, but was written by Mr. Shea.
4. See notice of his interment further on. I have retained the title " Sieur,"
not finding its exact equivalent in our language. It is sometimes translated "Sire,"
but whatever may have been the derivation or the original meaning of that term,
its present signification forbids such a use of it.
5. The government of New France was at this time in charge of the depart-
ment of the marine.
6. There are no entries of marriages in the Register as we have it.
7. See above pp. 9-12 ; notes 7 and 8.
8. See notice of his interment further on. The phrase "parafe et signe," literally
means " flourished and signed," but the idea intended to be conveyed is that Marin
signed the document himself personally, and that his name was not affixed to it by
another person, as is sometimes done by clerks in business houses.
9. From this expression it appears that while the original registers were kept at
the different posts, authenticated copies of them were sent in parts from time to time
to the seat of government to be deposited in the arcliives for preservation.
10. Another evidence that we have but a part of the register constantly kept.
Although the French word presqu' isle simply means a peninsula, it is here used as a
proper name. For an account of the fort built here, see above, p. 21. There was a
priest stationed at the fort here, as the Indian spy, Thomas Bull, informs us, as
late as March, 1759 ; but the name of the missionary is not given. — History of Erie
County, p. 43.
11. I have not been able to learn anything whatever of this priest.
JSTotes. 89
12. These Recollects are a branch of the First Order of St. Francis. St. Francis
of Assissium was born in Ilmbria, Italy, in 1182; established the Franciscan Order
August 16, 1209 ; and died October 4, 1226. The reformed branch of the Order,
known as the Recollects from their living at first in hermitages, was inaugurated by
Father John of Gaudaloupe in Spain in the year 1500. The Recollects were in-
troduced into New France by Samuel Champlain in 1615 ; and the first Mass
celebrated in Canada was by one of them, Father Joseph le Caron, at Riviere des
Prairies, June 24, of that year. — Shea's Charlevoix, vol. II. p. 25. But owing to the
change of feeling in the French court, and the temper of some of the Governors
General, they did not retain uninterrupted possession of the missionary field from
that early day until the time of which we are now speaking. A member of the
Augustinian Order, well versed in our history, writes me that, although all writers
on American Catholic history seem to take it for granted that the term " Recollect "
is used to designate only a member of the Franciscan Order, that opinion is
erroneous ; and he cites a letter in his possession in which a certain Father H. de la
Motte, chaplain of the French forces, writes, under date of May 19, 1779, to "his
dear children, the Passamaquoddy Indians, near Machias, Maine," and signs him-
self "Motte R. Aug. prte." i.e., "Recollect Augustinian preste," as I make it,
adds the priest. He continues: "In the Spanish works, from which I might give
numerous quotations, writers commonly put down our Barefooted branch as Becol-
letos simply. So that . . . the term is by no means singular to the Order of St.
Francis alone, but is used of other Barefooted Orders. . . . Since about 1660
our Fathers attended, as is probable, though not wholly certain, the Spanish forces
who were making a ' raid ' along the lakes in New York State ; and, since it is
certain that the first North American Indian to become a priest was an Iroquois,
and embraced the O. S. A. (Order of St. Augustine) in Madrid, Spain, I think I
am warranted in calling your notice to an error historians are likely to fall into, in
taking for granted that Recollect or Recolletos means, without further proof, a Fran-
ciscan." In the translation of the Register in the Daily Gazette, to which reference
has been made, the expression " Preste Recollect," is rendered " Franciscan priest."
which is erroneous, as those know who are familiar with the distinctive titles of the
various branches of the Order.
13. The name of Monsieur Dumas is frequently met with in the history of the
French operations on the head-waters of the Ohio. Besides the notices of him
given above, (pp. 28. 29) we have the following additional points in his career :
He appears to have assumed command of the French forces at the battle of the
Monongahela, on the death of Beaujeu. He was appointed to succeed Contrecwur
in the command of the army on the Beautiful River, and his first care, as Mr.
Parkman tells us, was to set on the western tribes to attack the border settlers.
'His success was triumphant. Yet evidences are not wanting of his humanity, as
the same writer proves. He boasts, in the style of the officers in New France at
that time, of his zeal in the cause of the king, his master ; for which zeal and
boasting he afterwards received the Cross of the Order of St. Louis. His account
of the destruction of Kittanning is strange enough. He says that Attigue was
attacked by " Le General Wachinton," with three or four hundred men on horse-
back ; that the Indians gave way ; but that five or six Frenchmen who were in the
town held the English in check till the fugitives rallied, when Washington and his
men took to flight, «&c. — Montcalm & Wolf, Parkman, vol. I. pp. 426, 427.
12
90 JSTotes.
14. A special interest attaches to the name of this missionary as being the first
priest or minister of any religious denomination to perform a public act of religious
worship on the spot where the city of Pittsburg now stands. His name was Charles
Baron, and he was most probably born in France. On entering the Recollect
branch of the Order of St. Francis, he took, according to the custom of religious
orders, another name, selecting that of Denys. He was ordained September 23,
1741 ; served on several missions in Canada ; among which were St. Maurice, in
1744, and Isle au Coudres, and Eboulements, in 1750 ; was tlien appointed chaplain
of the detachment detailed for the defense of western Pennsylvania ; was trans-
ferred to Fort St. Frederic at Ticonderoga, on Lake Champlain, some time after
December, 1756; and died there November 6, 1758, a few days before the abandon-
ment of Fort Duquesne. Here, again, the Gazette translation is erroneous in re-
marking that " P. R." appended to the name of the chaplain "stands for or signifies
Priest of the Recollect, or Monk of the Order of St. Francis, %■ e. Franciscan."
It means " Recollect Priest."
15. I have translated the term " Riviere au Boeuf " by '' French Creek," the
name by which that stream is now universally known.
16. Of the designation La Franchisse, and Bientourne, to be met further on, Mr.
Shea writes me : " It is the name by which a man generally goes, and which fre-
quently in a second generation becomes a family name. The custom arose from the
large Canadian families, and the occurrence of the same name in one locality. .
It ought, therefore, to be retained in French. . . . The old Registers are often
the readiest way of tracing many Canadians to their original family. A Mr.
Bientourne or Mr. La Franchisse finds here about the time the new name was
adopted and what the original family name was."
17. We may, perhaps, infer from this expression that he was not only chaplain
of the fort, but also superior of the missionaries in all the posts in the western part
of our State.
18. This chapel, dedicated to St. Peter, stood, as Washington informs us in his
Journal, inside the fort. As this is the first mention of it, it would appear not to
have been dedicated to divine service until shortly before this date. " The fort at
French Creek " was Le Boeuf, but I give a literal translation of the original.
19. From the deposition of Stephen CofFen — for some time a prisoner with the
French — which, with the Register, furnishes all that I have been able to learn of
this Commander, he would appear to have been of a choleric and peevish disposi-
tion, and very unpopular among the officers and men under his command ; a dispo-
sition that may be due in part to ill health and in part to want of complete success
in the expedition he had undertaken. So unfriendly were the subordinate officers
to him that when the Chevalier Le Crake arrived from Canada bringing a cross of
St. Louis for him, they would not permit him to accept it until the governor should
be made acquainted with his conduct. — Annals of the West, p. 104. He was suc-
ceeded by Le Gardeur de St. Fierre.— History of Erie County, p. 37.
20. The only one of these officers mentioned in the histories within my reach is
La Force. He was taken prisoner with others in the skirmish near the Great
Meadows, where Juraonville was killed, in May, 1754. "Being," as Washington
JSTotes. 91
says, " a bold, enterprising man, and a person of great subtlety and cunning," he
was detained and sent to the Governor of Virginia. About two years later he suc-
ceeded in escaping from prison, and great fears were felt by the settlers on the
frontier, owing to his influence with the Indians ; but he was afterward retaken
and brought to Williamsburg, where he was cast into a dungeon and put in heavy
irons. He was afterward released and returned to Canada. At the time of the
fall of Fort Niagara he was cruising on Lake Ontario and thus escaped. — Writings
of George Washington, vol. II. pp. 33 and 178. The Olden Time, vol. I. p. 370, et seq.
21. With this ends the entries from the posts in the northwestern part of our
State ; all those that follow are from Fort Duquesne.
22. The expression so frequently met with in the Register, "Fort Duquesne under
the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful Kiver," may
not be as clear to the mind of the general reader as it is to the Catholic. From an
early day it has been the custom in Catholic countries, or those formerly regarded
as such, to select a patron saint, not only for a whole country but also for cities and
localities. The above expression, in the light of tliis custom, means that the spot
occupied by the French here, and the chapel, as the religious centre of it, were
placed, by the piety of the people, under the special protection and patronage of
her whom, in the words of her own sublime prophecy, " all generations shall call
blessed." (St. Luke, 2 : 48.) The Blessed Virgin under this title was the Patroness
of the F'rench nation under the old regime, and this being an important place
should, in their opinion, be honored with the same title. It would be interesting
to know where, precisely, the chapel of Fort Duquesne stood, but we have not at
present, and cannot expect ever to have the means of determining this point. The
plan of the fort, as drawn by Captain Robert Stobo, in the summer of 1754, which
is the basis of all the other plans of it, shows no room or building designated as the
chapel ; but some of the buildings were said to contain several apartments, one of
which was no doubt used for a chapel, as was the case at Louisbourg. — Mont-
calm and Wolf, vol. II. pp. 54 and 57 ; and Memoirs of Capt. Robt. Stobo. The import-
ance which the French attached to the chapel, their demand for daily religious
service, iv 1 their custom in other places, prove beyond a doubt that they had a
chapel and that it stood within the fort; hence its location can readily be deter-
mined within a few feet. It may be remarked that the title underwent several
changes. At first it was " Fort Duquesne at the Beautiful River," then " Fort Du-
quesne under the title of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin ;" next, " Fort Du-
quesne under the title ot the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beautiful
River." Sometimes it is "The Most Blessed Virgin." What title could be more
truly poetic or beautiful than this ! But there is a singular circumstance connected
with it, which is worthy of note. I shall give it in the words of Rt. Rev. Michael
O'Connor, first Bishop of Pittsburg, whose remarks refer to the diocesan synod of
June, 1844, ninety years after the selection of a patron by Father Baron. Speak-
ing of the chapel he says : " It is presumed it was dedicated under this title on
the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin after their (the French soldiers')
first arrival, as it is only after that day that it is designated by that name in the
Register. It would appear that this dedication was accepted by the Blessed Virgin,
as at the first synod of the new Diocese of Pittsburg, the new diocese was
placed under the protection of the Holy Virgin under the title of the
92 JSTotes.
Assumption, though no one was aware at that time of the previous dedication
under the same title." — Diocesan Register. Some years after the organization of
the congregation of St. Mary of Mercy, which embraces that portion of the city
once occupied by Fort Duquesne, and of which I have been pastor for eleven years,
I had erected a memorial altar to commemorate that which stood in Fort Duquesne,
which was dedicated under the same title September 24, 1878.
23. The precise location of this cemetery cannot now be determined, nor will it
ever be, from the fact that much of the Point has been filled from eight to twelve
feet above its level at the time of the French. When excavations were being made
for a certain manufactory close in the Point, a few years ago, the workmen un-
earthed two skeletons, one that of a white man, the other that of an Indian, as
could be known from the formation of the skull. The white man had been in-
terred in a coffin, the other without it.
24. This expression would seem to include both Fort le Bceuf and Fort Ma-
chault ; if not, there is no reference to the latter stronghold in the Register, which
appears highly improbable.
25. This is doubtless a mistake in the copyist for " marriages." I am informed
by Mr. Shea that, owing to a few blunders by the copyist, " the Register, as
printed, is not absolutely to be depended on for the correctness of every word."
But it is my duty to give it as I find it.
26. See above p. 15, note 18. Also Pennsylvania Magazine of Hid. and Biog.,
1884, p. 128.
27. The Gazette, omitting monotonous repetitions, gives this curious translation of
the present entry : " Baptized, Nov. 3, 1754 — Denise Sauvagesse Louve, aged
twelve years, in compliance with his ardent desire." The Gazette invariably trans-
lates "Souvage," "Savage," or "Wild" instead of "Indian." The opinion of some
writers that the Loups (the French name for wolves), were a branch of the Delawares,
called by the English Munseys, appears to be incorrect, as the following goes to
show. The Loups are called Agotsagonen by the Iroquois. "These," says Mr.
Shea, " were the Mohegans. The term Agotsagonen was applied to other tribes
of the Algonquin family. Attempts have been made to construct a supposed great
Delaware confederacy, reaching from the Hudson to the Potomac, but this story is
quite recent, and its growth is curious. The petty tribe of Delawares, with whom
the Dutch seem to have had no extended relations, were enemies of the Minquas.
By confounding the Minquas who lived on the lower Susquelianna, with the Mo-
hawks, the Delawares were made to extend to the river of the latter tribe." — Fatlier
Joques* New Netherlands, notes, pp. 49, 50.
28. It is difficult to understand why in this place only the expression "first chap-
lain " should liave been used. We have no evidence that there were any other
priests at the fort, for only the name of Fatlier Baron appears on the Register, ex-
cept in one place where we meet with that of Rev. Luke Collet ; but he was no more
than a visitor, for he officiates with permission and signs himself, " Chaplain of
Presqu' Isle and French Creek."
28. bis. Mr. Shea surmises that this place may have been Pickawillaney, as the Eng-
lish called it, or Pique Town, on the Miami river, which became in the middle of
JSTotes. 93
the last century, one of the greatest Indian towns of the west, the centre of English
trade and influence, and a capital object of French jealousy.— l/on<caim & Wolf,
Parkman, vol. I., p. 52. I am, however, led to believe that it is the French render-
ing of the Indian name of some village in North Carolina, of which colony both
parents were said to be natives. Its location must forever remain a matter of con-
jecture. There is, indeed, a village in Ohio named Newville, but it is a considera-
ble distance from Piqua, which would seem to be the former Pique Town.
29. This was the first of the victims of the battle of the Monongahela, or Brad-
dock's Defeat, which took place near the east bank of the Monongahela river, ten
miles from its junction with the Allegheny, on the afternoon of July 9th, 1755, and
continued about three hours. Of the ill-fated commander of the English, his biogra-
pher says : "When or where Edward Braddock was born, there is no means of ascer-
taining. ... As may be judged from the date of his first commission, he must
have been born toward the close of the seventeenth century. On the 11th of
October, 1710, he entered the army with the rank of Ensign in the grenadier com-
pany of the Coldstream Guards, and on the 1st of August, 1716, was appointed a
Lieutenant." He rose from one grade to another till he was rewarded for his
bravery at the battle of Fontenoy, fought May 11th, 1745, by being appointed First
Major of his regiment. Other promotions awaited him, till on the 21st of Decem-
ber, 1754, he sailed for America as Commander-in-Chief of all the troops that were
to operate against the French. He was wounded at the battle of the Monongahela,
and died near the Great Meadows on the 13th, where his remains still repose. — His-
tory of Braddock's Expedition. In the difference of opinion regarding the person
who inflicted the fatal wound, I hold that it was Thomas Fausett, one of the col-
onial soldiers. As to his character, Horace Walpole sums it up in these words:
' Desperate in his fortune, brutal in his behavior, obstinate in his sentiments, he
was still intrepid and capable." Mr. Parkman, in Montcalm & Wolf, vol. I. pp. 191
and 220, calls him " the gallant bulldog ; "and says in another place, {The Conspiracy
of Pontiac, vol. I. p. 105,) "To Brp.ddock was assigned the chief command of all the
British forces in America ; and a person worse fitted for the office could scarcely
have been found. His experience had been ample, and none could doubt his courage ;
but he was profligate, arrogant, perverse, and a bigot to military rules." — See also
Writings of George Washington, Sparks, vol. II. pp. 77, 86, et seq. ; and Captivi'y of
Col. James Smith, pp. 11, 12.
.30. This is the only interment known to have taken place at the time on the
field of battle. The rout of the English was so complete that every one
thought only of saving liis own life. The bones of the English were not interred
till after tlie fall of Fort Duquesne, more than three years later.— 2'Ae Olden Time,
vol. I., pp. 186-188. Dr. Doddridge says, quaintly enough, " It is said that for some
time after Braddock's defeat, the bears liaving feasted on the slain, thought that
they had a right to kill and eat every human being with whom they met." — Set-
tlements and Indian Wars, &c., p. 64. note.
31. Cape Breton Island, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the site of the famous
stronghold of Louisbourg.
32. " Daniel Hyacinth Mary Lienard de Beaujeu, who so bravely attacked with
a petty force the finest army ever sent from England to operate against the French,
94 JVbtes.
was descended from a family from Dauphine, which has left its name to the Beau-
jolois, one of the divisions of that ancient province. The family figures in French
history of the eleventh century. In 1210 Guichard, Sire de Beaujeu, was sent
by Philip Augustus as his ambassador to the Sovereign Pontiff Innocent III.
Humbert V., Sire de Beaujeu, was Constable of France, and attended the coronation
of Baudouin II. as Emperor of Constantinople. Another of the name fought
under St. Louis in Egypt. William de Beaujeu was Grand-master of the Templars
in 1288, and was killed at the siege of Antioch in 1290. They figure in later times
in the annals of the brave. The Seigneur de Beaujeu, an officer of great experience
and ability, fell at the siege of Montbart in 1590 : another at Fontarabia iu 1638 !
Paul Anthony Quiqueran de Beaujeu is famous for his imprisonment at Constan-
tinople and his daring escape in the seventeenth century. One of this brave race com-
manded the man-of-war sent out as part of the expedition of Rene Chevalier de la
Salle, to operate against the rich mining country of Mexico, by way of Texas, and
is now receiving tardy justice from false and groundless charges." The hero of
the battle of the Monongahela was the second son of Louis Lienard de Beaujeu and
Denise Therese Migeon de Branssac, who was a widow when she married Beaujeu.
" He was born at Montreal, August 19, 1711, and at an early age entered the service
in which his father held a commission. He rose rapidly, showing that his ability
was recognized, and in 1718 we find him a captain in the detachment of the marine
which constituted the French troops in Canada . . . He was next, it is said,
commandant at Detroit." He was soon after in command at Niagara ; and as a
reward for his )>ravery he, about this time, received the Cross of St. Louis. In
1755 he was sent to Fort Duquesne with men and supplies, and was appointed to
the command. Here it was he was to crown the great achievements of his life with
one still greater. "At daybreak on the 9th of July, the French officers and soldiers
gathered in the little ' chapel of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin at the Beau-
tiful River,' as that in the fort was styled. The commandant knelt in confession
before the grey-robed chaplain, the Recollect Father Denys Baron, and when Mass
was said, received Holy Communion at his hands .... Then the little party
marched gayly out, numbering 72 regular soldiers, 146 Canadians." After much
persuasion a motley band of soma 600 Indians of many tribes followed, among
whom was the redoubtable Pontiac. The story of the ambush and battle are well
known and need not be repeated. "At the third volley from the English, de Beau-
jeu fell, pierced through the forehead, it is said, with a ball .... Thus fell
Daniel Lienard de Beaujeu, in the arms of victory, dying as nobly as any of his
crusader ancestors on the fields of Palestine, Egypt, or Tunis ; and dying more
gloriously, for not even one of his gallant race ever achieved so great success, or
turned a desperate cause into a triumphant defeat of so superior a force." The
body was kept till the 12th when it was interred in the cemetery of the fort ; but
the resting place of the gallant commander will remain a mystery forever. Beaujeu
did not receive, even from the French, due credit for having planned the desperate
struggle in which he fell ; but that he was then in command is clearly proven from
this entry in the Register. — Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography — article
by Mr. John Gilmary Shea, 1884, pp. 121-128. See above pp. 28, 29.
33. In the Gazette translation of this entry, the J^rench phrase, "a este tue" is
rendered " wounded," with the foot-note appended, " The word is tue, killed, but no
JVotes. 95
doubt used inadvertently." This rendering is wholly gratuitous and is alike
at variance with the meaning of the word in French and with the facts of
history, for in all accounts of the battle it is distinctly stated that Beau-
jeu was killed. The difficulty with the translator seems to have been to find a
reason why a man should prepare for death before he was certain that it was at
hand. It is only one of the many instances in which even learned non-Catholics
show it no reproach, in their opinion, for a man to be ignorant of the simplest matter
relating to Catholic teaching and practice. Nothing strikes a Catholic more than
this, except the complacency with which such ignorance is cherished. The study
of a five-cent catechism would save many a learned man from appearing ridiculous
in the eyes of the largest body of Christians on earth.
35. This is the only place in which the name of this priest appears. See p. 92
note 28. '
36. The first white child born on the spot where the city of Pittsburg now
stands ; but he did not live long to enjoy the honor.
37. The Huron Indians were expelled by the Iroquois from their homes on the
northeast of Lake Huron, about the middle of the seventeenth century, and after
many vicissitudes part of them settled, in 1671, in Michilimackinac, at the outlet of
Lake Michigan ; but whether on the island in the strait, or on the point of land
to the north, is disputed. The mission was dedicated to St. Ignatius, the founder of
the Jesuits ; and on the spot repose the ashes of the gentle Father Marquette.
Charlevoix' New France, vol. III. pp. 170, 171 ; Parkman's La Salle, pp. 71, 72.
38. There was at that time, as we learn from the Journal of the Moravian,
Christian Frederick Post, who was on several occasions employed by the colonial gov-
ernment to use his influence with the Indians in withdrawing them from their allegi-
ance to the French, a number of Irish Catholics among the traders and Indians.
He writes in his Journal, under date of September 1st, 1758, an account of an
interview he had with the Indians at Logstown, and a speech that he made them
on the occasion, in which he said : " My brothers, I know you have been wrongly
pursuaded by many wicked people ; for you must know there are a great many
Papists in the country, in French interest, who appear like gentlemen, and have
sent many runaway Irish Papist servants among you, who have put bad notions
into your heads, and strengthened you against your brothers, the English." To
this he annexes the memorandum : " There are a great number of Irish traders
now among the Indians, who have always endeavored to spirit up the Indians
against the English, which made some that I was acquainted with from their infancy,
desire the chiefs to inquire of me, for they were certain I would speak the truth."
The editor of The Olden Time, (vol. I. p. 116), from which this extract is taken,
remarks in a marginal note : " The Indian traders used to buy the transported
Irish and other convicts, as servants, to be employed in carrying up goods among
the Indians ; many of these ran away from their masters and joined the Indians."
On the 5th of the same month, in another speech, Mr. Post tells the Indians ;
" Those wicked people that set you at variance with the English, by telling you
many wicked stories, are Papists in French pay ; besides there are many among us
in the French service, who appear like gentlemen, and buy Irish Papist servants,
and promise them great rewards to run away to you and strengthen you against the
English, by making them appear as black as devils."— Ibid. p. 120.
96 JSTotes.
39. This is, doubtless, Pennsylvania. In the MSS. from which the Gazette
translation was made, it is written " Pels-avenie," with a note on the difficulties
against which the transcriber had to contend. By Pennsylvania here is meant only
that part of our State lying east of the Allegheny mountains ; for all west was
claimed by the French, and also by the Indians, while the southern portion was
held by Virginia to be included within her charter. At that time there were
Catholic missions, with a resident pastor generally, at Philadelphia, Lancaster,
Conewago (now in Adams county), and Goshenhoppen (now in Montgomery county).
These persons were most probably prisoners taken by the Indians in one of their
numerous raids on the frontier settlements. Some of the other English and IrLsh
Catholics mentioned in the Register were likely of the same class. The reader
will have learned by this time that faultless orthography is not one of the cardinal
virtues of the French Register, nor could it be where names were spelled phonetic-
ally.
40. This person must not be confounded with M. Douville, mentioned by Mr.
Parkman, {Montcalm & Wolf, vol. I. pp. 330 and 423,) who was killed by the Eng-
lish in April, 1756 ; but whom Washington, in the passage referred to by Mr.
Parkman (Spark's Washington's Writings, vol. II. p. 137,) calls Donville.
41. This entry is not found in the Gazette translation.
42. To this name the Gazette translation appends the remark : " Hanguain.
John, no doubt, gave his name to the priest in his best English or French, with a
considerable smack of the brogue ; and Father Denys, no doubt, did his best to
make it intelligible to his French readers, and thus we pet this riddle which each
reader can answer at his pleasure." Mr. Shea writes : " Hanguain is evidently
the transcriber's error for Haugain, which any Frenchman would read Hogan."
It is a matter of conjecture, but I prefer the opinion that the transcriber did
not make a mistake, and that the name is Hannigan ; and this opinion, I think, is
supported by the ways in which the word is spelled in the Register, "Hainguain,'
and "Hanguain."
43. This, like some of the other entries found in the Register, is in language so
peculiar, as the reader will perceive, as to render translation almost impossible.
The name given as " Bangarnoz " is " Bangarmon" in the Gazette translation.
44. This, most probably, means no more than a colonist speaking the English
language.
45. In the Gazette translation the following note is appended to this entry :
" By the way, does not the name of the baptized child, Jean or John Turner, re-
mind some of our old citizens of a tall, upright, active man named John Turner
who used often to be seen walking our streets, and whom, it was always supposed
by us boys, had once been a prisoner with the French or Indians ? Was our John
Turner the baptized child?" It would be difficult to answer this question. I am
informed that a person of that name, who was said to be a brother-in-law of the
notorious Simon Girty, lived for some time, in days long gone, on Squirrel Hill, on
the east side of the Monongahela, four miles above its junction with the Allegheny^
46. La Motte Condillac was the founder of Detroit. In the year 1701 he
planted the military colony, although at an earlier day some efforts had been made
JSTotes. 97
to secure possession of this important pass. — The Conspiracy of Pontiac, Parkman,
vol. I. p. 213; Charlevoix' New France, vol. V. pp. 136, et scq. The foundation of
the mission, which, like that of Fort Duqiiesne, was under the title of the Assump-
tion of the Blessed Virgin, was contemporaneous with that of the military post.
47. With the Gazelle I must say that the only translation I can find for this old
Frencli word, which is at all admissible in this place, is " marked with small-pox."
Altliough this is the only mention of that disease so dreaded by the Jrdians, and so
fatal, as all frontier liistory attests, it is yet possible that as a precaution a separate
cemetery was set apart for those who died of it. Tlie English, even in this pre-
cise locality, did not hesitate to use the small-pox as an auxiliary to their
forces against the Indians, a few years later, as the following letter of General John
Amherst to Colonel Bouquet, written in July, 1763, shows :
" Could it not be contrived to send the small-pox among these detestable tribes of
Indians ? We must on this occasion use every stratagem in our power to reduce
them. (Signed) J. A."
Bouquet replies :
" I will try to inoculate the with some blankets that may fall in their
hands, and take care not to get tlie disease myself. As it is a pity to expose good
men against them, I wish we could make use of the Spanish method, to hunt with
English dogs. . ." Amherst rejoined : "You will do well to inoculate the In-
dians by means of blankets," &c. This correspondence is among the manuscripts
of the British Museum, Bouquet and Haldimand Papers, No. 21, 634. — The Conspir-
acy of Ponliac, Parkman, vol. II. pp. 39, 40.
48. The extraordinary age of this chief, and the proximity of death perhaps
impelled him to demand baptism ; for tlie Iroquois were very slow to embrace the
true faith. The name is also spelled Chistiguay.
49. The order of entries here in the Gazelle translation differs a little from that
in the Register.
50. Whetlier tliis " three" means days, months or years, the Register furnishes
no means of determining. In the Gazelle translation it is " three years "
51. No reason can be assigned for the transposition of this and the following
entries, except perhaps, that they may have been copied from a separate record in
the archives.
52. This certificate is not found in the published copies of the Register, but was
sent to me by Mr. Shea.
Note. — The cut on the back of the title-page represents Bouquet's Eedoubt,
marked on the diagram, page 6. It is not, however, an exact representation of
that " last remnant of British r.ile in Pittsburg." The redoubt, which was built in
1764, is a two-story brick house, about fifteen feet square. At a sufficient height
from each floor a log was put in the wall all round, in which loop-holes for muskets
were cut, which may be seen to the present day, although the earth has been filled
around the building half way up the walls of the first story. The cut on page 6
represents the vicinity of Pittsburg in early times. That on page 6 is properly
"the Point," and explains itself.
3 5282 00188 3977
DATE DUE
PI 59
P6
1954
COD.
cT»rK<! F159 P6 L3 1954x C. 2
^^tfmling Andrew Arnold,
B^eaTster^o. Fort Duq[j«"^^
00188